Up to 2 million people marched in cities around the world in solidarity with the Women’s March on Washington. Although not specifically billed as protests against the inauguration of Donald Trump, the vast majority highlighted issues they saw as under threat from the new US administration.

We spoke to protesters around the world about why they took part.

‘I grew up as a woman knowing that rights can always be taken away from us’ – Andreea Molocea, Prague

‘[Trump] is bad news not only for Muslim, black, Mexican, LGBTQI, but for the entire planet.’ Photograph: Andreaa Molocea

By denying global warming, the US takes steps back by reinforcing greed and money as a supreme value. The only value I know and I obey as a woman and human being is life. Life is what matters and life is what the political system is threatening now. A man that believes he is superior and does not care for the planet will never care for its people, for the diversity that we are.



The election of Donald Trump was a big shock for Europe. He is bad news not only for Muslim, black, Mexican [and] LGBTQI [people] but for the entire planet. He is gathering in his administration people who are united by greed and white supremacy, and are very ignorant about climate change.

In my home country of Romania, Trump is already being praised as a role model by conservative and nationalistically oriented politicians. The danger to have a switch to fascism is real and can not be denied.

I grew up as a woman knowing that rights can always be taken away from us, ready to stand up when times will ask for it, but I never thought that this will happen so soon or at this scale.

‘White men, we don’t want to subjugate you, we just want to be equal. What’s so scary about that?’ – Maggie Bunuel, Paris

‘My only hope is that our resistance is inexorable and his tenure as brief as possible.’ Photograph: Bridget Farrenkopf Habib

Physically showing up has so much more power than tweeting from your couch. I’ve raged and bellowed all over the internet and among friends, but being part of a movement means actually getting out there and moving your body sometimes.

I am passionate about equality, opportunity, safety and dignity for all. This is what most perplexes me. White men, we don’t want to subjugate you, we just want to be equal. What’s so scary about that?



My only hope is that our resistance is inexorable and his tenure as brief as possible. What’s not to fear? Climate disaster, human rights violations, the dismantling of the constitution, the dissolution of America as we know it, nuclear war. Whatever happens in the US will affect the entire world, so there’s no escaping its reach.

I’d attended the Paris Against Trump march a week after the election and we were understandably shocked and despondent. Yesterday, there were 10 times as many people, and the energy was ecstatic, proud, defiant and loving.

‘I take it very personally when a man says it’s OK to grab an unwilling pussy’ – Dana LeMarr, New York

‘Gay rights, women’s rights, equality … nuclear disarmament … they are an essential part of democracy, freedom, and humanity.’ Photograph: Dana Le Marr

I fear that Trump’s insistence that good honest journalism is fake news, because it’s critical of him, smacks of Big Brother in Orwell’s 1984. Russia isn’t a country that a free democratic country wants to emulate, yet Trump seems to be warmer to Putin than Melania. And four years of Trump could push us past the [climate change] tipping point.

I’m an survivor of incest, so I take it very personally when a man says it’s OK to grab an unwilling pussy. There’s gay rights, women’s rights, equality and our basic freedoms at stake. There’s world peace, nuclear disarmament and Nato. Don’t even get me started on the constitution. I’m passionate about all of these things because they are an essential part of democracy, freedom, and humanity.

Trump hasn’t even responded to the millions of us who protested. What president behaves in that puerile manner? We’re fucked. We have to join hands, have faith, and work together to make the best of a damn bad deal.



I’ve been drowning in feelings of shame, anger, confusion and bitterness since Trump won the election. Today, I found humanity walking beside me.

‘Life is good if only there wasn’t Brexit and Trump’ – Meike Brunkhorst, London

Meike Brunkhorst, right, with Farika Holden: ‘The march has restored my belief in solidarity among women and society.’ Photograph: Carmen Fishwick

So happy to be carrying dicks on sticks through central London! I am upset by misogyny, discrimination, racism and prejudices being endorsed and deemed OK by Trump becoming president of a world power.

I am a German-born Londoner who arrived more than 30 years ago as an au pair. My home is Notting Dale and I am scared of the prospect of being sent packing. Life is good if only there wasn’t Brexit and Trump.

The march has restored my belief in solidarity among women and society. The vibe was positive, uplifting and optimistic. It may not have an effect on world politics but it proves we are not alone. Thousands of individuals of different backgrounds coming together, joined by a sense of the world shifting in the wrong direction. I don’t consider Trump a leader and hope his time in post won’t be long-term.

‘I fear that much of his rhetoric will continue and we will become even more divided’ – Hilary O’Haire, Boston

‘We need to support one another, and be willing to listen to an opinion different than our own.’ Photograph: Hilary O'Haire

It was important to me to attend the event because I think about all the generations of women who have come before me, and the many generations to come. I do not have to work on Saturdays to support my family like so many others in this country have to do.

I hope we can come together as a country. I fear that much of his rhetoric will continue and we will become even more divided. We need to support one another, and be willing to listen to an opinion different than our own. We all live in our own bubble.

I became emotional when listening to the speakers, many who continue to fight on our behalf every single day. I loved seeing so many people united together, and it was truly special to be a part of.

‘We were marching … to save us from the cultural wasteland created by someone so hostile to the arts, the free press’ – Edward Wouk, Florence, Italy

‘We were marching for women’s rights and human rights, to save our planet against climate change.’ Photograph: Edward Wouk

We were marching for women’s rights and human rights, to save our planet against climate change, and to save us from the cultural wasteland created by someone so hostile to the arts, the free press, and dissenting views generally.



What might have differentiated this one [from other marches] was, perhaps, the very high number of scholars who came along to protest so many aspects of Trump’s vile rhetoric and repulsive policies, and especially his apparent pledge to eviscerate the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

The march attracted huge attention as hundreds snaked through the historic streets of Florence, pausing in the Galleria degli Uffizi, the famous art museum, and in front of the Duomo and the Signoria.

‘I hope that people will work harder to develop empathy and tear down Trump’s walls’ – Kate Johnson, Bristol

Kate Johnson (left): ‘I worry about climate change, because it’s something that isn’t going to wait another four years for a rational response.’ Photograph: Kate Johnson

I worry about climate change, because it’s something that isn’t going to wait another four years for a rational response. On an emotional level, I’m worried about the way people are treated: black lives matter, LGBQT lives matter, refugees matter, immigrants matter, accessible healthcare matters. The discouraged white man trying to support his family, who may have voted against himself when he voted for Trump, or for Brexit – he matters, too.

Trump’s win is devastating, and motivating. I’ve taken for granted that I live in a democracy, and that people are basically good. The way Trump’s bullying has inspired more bullying hurts. So, now it’s time to get engaged, to call representatives, to show up, to be kind.

My only hope is that others will continue to stay alert and engaged, and that America will have a reckoning with itself. I hope that people will work harder to develop empathy and tear down Trump’s walls.

‘If we continue to stick together ... I believe it will just be an apostrophe in America’s history’ – Lucy Rouse, Amsterdam

‘He seems to have convinced nearly half of the US that he is somehow in it for them and then proceeds to fill his administration with billionaires.’ Photograph: Lucy Rouse

After feeling decidedly depressed having forced myself to sit through Trump’s inauguration speech yesterday, today felt better. There are enough people out there who celebrate diversity and condemn his behaviour and views. If we all continue to stick together and speak up, I believe it will just be an apostrophe in America’s history, as Obama said. Although, I’m actually not sure I believe that right now but I’m going to keep saying it until I do.

It’s hard to pinpoint what I feel most strongly about or what I am more scared about – that he objectifies women so much, that he plans to roll back Obamacare, that he seems to have convinced nearly half of the US that he is somehow in it for them and then proceeds to fill his administration with billionaires. It’s reported that he has already taken down the LGBT and civil rights movement section on the White House website.



But after today, I do think if there is enough of us that can continue to do small things every day, maybe he won’t do as much damage as recently I’ve been fearing he will.



‘I fear his dishonesty, disrespect, ignorance, his impulsivity, and self-aggrandising attitude’ – Daniel Schechter, Geneva

‘I am fearful of his bringing us to war: military battle, cyberwar, trade war rather than to peace and greater understanding.’ Photograph: Dan Schechter

I have felt helpless in stopping the relentless and dim-witted attacks on the free press, on civil and human rights, gender equality, environmental protection particularly, given global warming, equal access to physical and mental healthcare and education.

My hopes are that Trump will realise that he is in over his head and that he is wielding enormous but not endless power, for which the American people (and the world) hold him accountable. If he does not change rapidly (and I am not optimistic, based on what I have seen since the campaign), I hope for his resigning or being impeached.

My fear is Trump’s dishonesty, disrespect, ignorance, his impulsivity, and self-aggrandising attitude in light of what I take to be great insecurity along with his overwhelming need to win and be praised are going to do damage to America’s people, to human rights, to America’s role as a model of democracy, and to the world order and nature itself. I am fearful of his bringing us to war – military battle, cyberwar, trade war – rather than to peace and greater understanding.

Attending the march made me feel empowered, less alone, and realising that each of us can make a difference however small. We are all together with loud voices, important messages, humour and reflection and determination. It was glorious.

‘[At the march] I felt hopeful for the future my children will inherit’ – Sanjay Sabnani, Los Angeles

Sanjay Sabnani with his daughter, Mallika: ‘I took her to the march to let her know that it is always OK to stand up for what you believe in.’ Photograph: Sanjay Sabnani

As the father of three amazing young women, the son of an incredible mother, and the friend of so many others, I am saddened that they still have to fight for logic and decency.

I took my daughter to the march to let her know that it is always OK to stand up for what you believe in and because I want her to know that I believe in her. I also went to make up for the mistakes I have made in wrongly judging women as a younger man.

[At the march] I felt hopeful for the future my children will inherit. Any gathering promoting humanity in the spirit of love is one I would consider attending.