Kaila White

The Republic | azcentral.com

A few weeks before the presidential election, a secret, invite-only Facebook group emerged for Hillary Clinton supporters. It was called Pantsuit Nation, which now has more than 3.7 million members who share stories and support.

When their positivity turned to devastation, many formed state-specific, unsanctioned Pantsuit Nation “chapters” as a way to gather like-minded people in their communities and turn their pain into action.

Four such groups popped up in Arizona, but rather than stay segmented, they joined forces to create a unified Arizona chapter that now has more than 5,000 members on Facebook.

On Sunday, about 800 Clinton supporters met in Tempe for the first Pantsuit Nation Arizona chapter meeting.

The afternoon meeting featured mostly women, of all ages, buzzing with excitement and looking to take action. Many wore "Nasty Woman" shirts, and others wore safety pins, a symbol of solidarity for people in marginalized groups.

“It’s a ray of hope, because I’ve been so depressed and angry and sad and upset about the results of the election,” said Suzanne Hetts, a 65-year-old winter resident of Sun City with two streaks of purple in her hair, as she waited in line to enter the meeting. “I’m hoping that they can come up with some actual actions rather than just venting and being upset and sharing how we feel, but also something that can be done to make sure that the president-elect doesn’t destroy this country.”

Planning instead of protesting

The founders of the original Arizona groups are now the leadership of the single group: eight women who worked countless hours to organize the meeting and eventually expand it to two identical meetings because of overwhelming interest after President-elect Donald Trump won the election.

Their initial mission statement defines the chapter as “an action and advocacy based group focused on fostering community service and civic engagement. We strive to protect and support marginalized groups, while furthering the progressive platform for a better, bluer state.”

So far, they do not intend to focus on rallies, protests, marches or vigils.

“What we saw after the election was an outcry of people who were feeling very lost and frustrated and upset and wanted to help but had no idea where to start,” said one of the administrators, Cassie Chilton, a 27-year-old from Gilbert.

“It can be a little daunting when … you feel isolated because you’re in a red state, perhaps you’re in a conservative town in addition to that, and there are so many organizations you can reach out to, and where do you begin?”

The chapter is organizing dozens of subcommittees by region and topic, such as women’s rights, environmental protection, or advocacy and outreach to the LGBT, Latino or Black Lives Matter communities.

Asking Mom how to spell 'women's rights'

In a small room where people wrote thank-you cards to Clinton, a young girl focused intently before asking her mom how to spell both "women's rights," and "protect."

Robyn Noll brought two of her three daughters to the meeting in hopes of inspiring them to take action.

"The election results show me that there's clearly a lot of work to do in this country, and Hillary can't do it all herself; that's been clear," she said. "So more people need to step up and do the important work, and I want to be one of them."

A public Facebook page for the national Pantsuit Nation group has been established, along with a website, pantsuitnation.org.