Oklahoma City will see a Women’s March in January as part of a national group of marches.
The march will be from 2-4 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 20 at the Oklahoma State Capitol building at 2300 N Lincoln Blvd in Oklahoma City. This march is recognized as a “sister march” to the march being held in Washington D.C., according to the Women’s March website.
In a statement on the website, organizers said the goal of marching is to create widespread social change.
“The mission of Women’s March is to harness the political power of diverse women and their communities to create transformative social change.” reads the national website. “Women’s March is committed to dismantling systems of oppression through nonviolent resistance and building inclusive structures guided by self-determination, dignity and respect.”
The march in Oklahoma City is currently being publicized through a Facebook event titled “2019 Official Women’s March Oklahoma City.” The Oklahoma march will be on Jan. 20, while the national march will occur on Jan. 19. The Facebook event page said this decision was made to allow Oklahomans to attend the larger march in Washington D.C.
“The national organization has reached out to us and asked us to send a delegation of Oklahomans to Washington DC. As a result of this incredible opportunity, we will be hosting the Oklahoma City Women’s March on Sunday, Jan. 20 so that our DC marchers have the opportunity to attend and participate in both marches,” reads the Facebook event page.
In 2017, march organizers said 7,000 people attended the Oklahoma City march. There are currently 924 people “Going” and 5,300 people “Interested” on the Facebook event.
Lisi Levy, acting sophomore, has not been to a Women’s March before, but she marched in March for Our Lives in 2018 and was involved in the 2014 protests in Ferguson, Missouri.
“It is so empowering for especially women growing up today, like even myself, to see so many women go out and support each other,” Levy said. “It doesn’t have to be political to support another woman.”
Levy said she is looking forward to meeting people at the Oklahoma City march in January.
“You can have a million different views from the woman standing next to you at the march, but you can still bond over the fact that you are women and you have that in common, and you have similar struggles sometimes because of that,” Levy said.
Brynna Linkous, psychology sophomore, is also planning to attend the Oklahoma Women’s March.
“I think it shows that people care about this issue and it makes people take notice,” Linkous said. “Changes need to be made.”
The Oklahoma Women’s March is currently looking for volunteers to assist with many aspects of the event. Volunteers are needed to help set up and break down the event, to organize contact info and to work as ambassadors during the march. Students who are interested in volunteering can email the organizers directly at OKCWomensMarch@gmail.comor comment on the event page on Facebook.
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