Bay Area Women’s Marches attract thousands opposing Trump

Countless pink knit hats came out of storage as tens of thousands of protesters shouted and streamed through downtown San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose and other communities in the second incarnation of the Women’s March.

In San Francisco, an enormous crowd jammed Civic Center Plaza for a rally, then marched down Market Street to the Embarcadero in a wave of people that stretched for blocks. In Oakland, the protesters crowded the shore of Lake Merritt, then made their way to City Hall.

Other Northern California crowds gathered in Walnut Creek, Pacifica and even fired-up Chico in Butte County.

The raucous and peaceful local events were part of dozens of marches around the U.S. and the world to protest President Trump’s first year and to organize political opposition to it.

“Not Our President — Illegitimate,” read a giant banner being carried through Oakland to the shore of Lake Merritt.

Thousands walk on 14th Street towards Frank Ogawa Plaza in the Women's March and rally in Oakland, Calif. on Saturday, Jan. 20, 2018. Thousands walk on 14th Street towards Frank Ogawa Plaza in the Women's March and rally in Oakland, Calif. on Saturday, Jan. 20, 2018. Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle Buy photo Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 105 Caption Close Bay Area Women’s Marches attract thousands opposing Trump 1 / 105 Back to Gallery

“Grab them by the Mid-Terms,” read a sign held by a Market Street marcher.

“This year I’m all about the Resistance movement and flipping the House (of Representatives) in 2018,” Berkeley attorney Ginny Roemer, 64, said as she stood outside the Oakland Museum of California, a few blocks from Lake Merritt. “Isn’t it interesting that the government shut down today? We’re out here to blame it on Trump.”

Women and their supporters marched from the Lake Merritt BART Station to a large tent by the shore. After listening to speeches, the crowd headed west on 14th Street to City Hall.

Oakland police said 40,000 to 50,000 people attended the march and rally and crowds were peaceful.

While downtown Oakland continued to fill with pink, hats of a similar shade began assembling in downtown San Francisco. By noon, Civic Center Plaza was a sea of knit caps and protest signs — many of them lambasting Trump.

“Sorry, Mom, your president is a pig,” said one sign, and another read, “Keep Your Laws Out of My Drawers.”

The procession down Market Street was led by a dozen police cars and motorcycles, a circling helicopter, a cluster of motorized cable cars and a blocks-long stream of pink, red, crimson, violet and fuchsia hats, many of them worn by men. There were kids, seniors, dogs, acrobats, drummers, musicians, screamers, chanters and somersaulters.

“The march has given me another burst of energy, because it has been a fatiguing year,” said Debbie Wallace, who attended last year’s rally in her hometown of Santa Rosa. “It’s nice to know we’re not alone.”

Dozens of signs from the #MeToo movement, the abortion rights movement, the equal pay movement and a lot of other movements filled the plaza.

“We’ve reached that tipping point, and people realized they can’t be quiet anymore,” said Sarah Gibson, who came to San Francisco’s march from Petaluma wearing a crown of flowers and a “Time’s Up” pin. “I’m so proud of the women that are brave enough to speak up.”

More than a dozen activists, advocates, artists and politicians took the stage in front of City Hall to rail against Trump, denounce violence against women and urge voters to mobilize for the November midterm election.

“As I look out on this crowd, I am so thankful to see the power of women has finally awakened,” said Brittany Packnett, who helped start the nonprofit Campaign Zero, which opposes police violence. “I don’t care how you got woke, I only care that you stay woke.”

Other signs in the plaza said “Grab Back” and “Not My President.” Among the most popular was one that said “I’m with her,” with arrows pointing in every direction.

In San Jose, another pink-hatted rally attracted 20,000 protesters, according to a San Jose police spokesman. In Walnut Creek, more than 10,000 people were at Women’s March Contra Costa. In Pacifica, about 1,000 turned out, with an estimated 5,000 in Chico.

On the shore of Lake Merritt, Lande Ajose, 51, of Oakland was at the march with her daughter, Alex Ajose-Nixon, 11, who said she gave up dance class to attend.

“Feminism and women’s rights are really important to me,” Alex said. “I want to make sure that when I’m an adult, everything is good and fair.”

Her mother carried a sign proclaiming, “Orange is Not the New Black,” referring to the president. She said she was incensed at Trump reportedly referring to some Third World countries as “shitholes” whose citizens are unwelcome in the U.S.

“To say that his comments were unfortunate would be to minimize them,” Ajose said. “They were patently racist. It’s part of a system of denigration of people of color. It’s infuriating.”

On the stage, speaker after speaker urged the crowd to get angry, get loud and get registered to vote.

“Today, we are literally marching for our future,” Rosemary Jordan of Alameda for Impeachment told the crowd. “There is strength in numbers, there is power in words, and there is influence in voting.”

A small group calling itself the Bay Area Suffragettes was dressed in Rosie the Riveter costumes as it listened to speakers at Lake Merritt. The crowd later marched from the lake to Oakland City Hall to the sound of loud drums.

Dorene Giacopini, 57, of Richmond said she was representing her 101-year-old mother, Primetta of San Jose, who helped make ball bearings during World War II.

“Trump is a criminal, pure and simple,” she said. “He needs to be put in his place, which is very likely jail.”

Marchers turned up in Washington, Chicago, Philadelphia, Rome, Osaka, Japan, and even West Palm Beach, Fla., not far from Trump’s golfing headquarters. He wasn’t there. The president, in a Twitter message, encouraged women to “celebrate historic milestones,” but the only milestone most protesters seemed to want to celebrate was his disappearance.

At the Bay Area rallies, police officers had little to do but direct traffic. There were no reports of arrests.

Jenna Lyons, Joaquin Palomino and Steve Rubenstein are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: jlyons@sfchronicle.com, jpalomino@sfchronicle.com, srubenstein@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JennaJourno, @JoaquinPalomino