Two days before the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump, the Women’s March Foundation will be gathering in downtown Los Angeles for “The People’s March.” Locally organized demonstrations will simultaneously take place across the nation.
On Saturday, Jan. 18, demonstrators will begin gathering at 10 a.m. in Pershing Square and will march toward LA City Hall at 10:30 a.m. for a rally.
“Together, we will send a LOUD and CLEAR message that we will not go quietly into the night. We will resist. We will persist. And we will organize,” the event’s promotional material states.
“In 2017, we came together to march, resist, and fight for a future that values women’s rights, immigrant rights, LGBTQ+ equality, and justice for our communities and planet. Here we are in 2025, standing at another pivotal moment in history.”
The day after Trump’s first inauguration, in 2017, the nonprofit Women’s March organized, at the time, the largest single-day protest in United States history, where over 5 million people marched in every state and across the globe.
High school senior Hannah Sarnoff, 17, from the San Fernando Valley, said watching the marches when she was younger had a big impact on her and opened her eyes to how people could bring about change.
“I’ve always wanted to go, but I felt like I was never at the right age to go march,” said Sarnoff, who plans on attending her first demonstration wearing a “women’s rights are human rights” T-shirt she got from her grandmother for Chanukah.
“And with the inauguration coming up right after, I think this is the perfect time to go march,” said Sarnoff, adding that she vividly remembers crying with her friends after Trump’s first inauguration when she was in fourth grade.
“I want to do as much as I can to make sure the things that matter to me are something I still see in the next four years,” said Sarnoff. “The 20th is a day that I think is going to really change a lot of my life, and I’m very nervous for it, especially being a young woman and going off to college. … All the unknowns of this upcoming year are really terrifying.”
Sarnoff is concerned about the state of the environment, LGBTQ+ rights, misinformation, the breakdown of the educational system and abortion rights under another Trump presidency.
She recalled how one of her friends who lives in Louisiana, where childbearing people no longer have the right to abortion, recently had a pregnancy scare.
“I remember talking to her, and I was like, California is always an option. You can always come here. … But in a few months, I might not have that same option,” said Sarnoff. “Not knowing where I’m going to college, in different states, I don’t want to lose the rights I have over my own body.”
March organizer Emiliana Guereca, president and founder of Women’s March Foundation, an LA-based nonprofit, fears that this next Trump term will be the 2.0 version of his last time in office.
“When we marched the first year, everything we said would happen in the Trump administration did happen and worse,” said Guereca.
“It’s not just about one election. It is about the future of our country,” she continued. “What the [Trump] administration set forth in the first term will affect us for decades, and so the second term will be even more.”
With what she called a “disregard” for women’s rights, immigrant rights, LGBTQ+ rights and worker rights, Guereca believes many aspects of Trump’s second term will be dangerous for marginalized groups.
“We need to make sure that we are all in solidarity. Because when they come for one, they come for everyone,” said Guereca.
This year, as part of a broader conversation with coalition partners, the organization changed the event name to “People’s March” in an effort to push the “message of unity and solidarity” among marginalized people.
Although march numbers have dwindled over the past eight years, Guereca said it’s not just about the march; more importantly, it’s about their continued advocacy work.
“We continue to work on equal pay for women. We continue to work on our initiatives – the Feminist Street initiative. We continue to work on getting women elected into office,” she said, adding that throughout the years they have rallied for various topics such as reproductive rights and family separation.
According to Guereca, around 80% of the people who attend the demonstrations are new, and for the foundation, the march is “a way to bring in new people, new voices,” who will join the advocacy efforts and continue fighting for an equal future for women.
“We can’t stop marching, we cannot stop advocating, because women are not equal,” said Guereca. “We’re not just marching for ourselves. We’re marching for future generations, for our children, for our communities, to also feel safe and understand that we are out here, still advocating for equality – that a better world is possible when we all work together.”
Sarnoff, who has already been volunteering with the Grassroots Democrats HQ, may just be the kind of youthful new demonstrator Guereca is hoping to invigorate into future advocacy efforts. And for Sarnoff, who cannot yet vote, marches like this are a means of having her voice be heard and showing people that representation matters.
“I think these marches are a really good way to remind the public that we have the power to make change in the world,” said Sarnoff. “It’s up to us to go out and produce the change. We can’t wait for someone else to do it for us.”
I am so happy that the younger generation are willing to engage protest, & involve themselves in making the world more humane,just & steeped in love. I am very proud of the unselfish, fearless & inspirational activities my granddaughter & all those like her, participate in.
Hanna I too am very proud of you and you’re an inspiration to many of the young men and women in your age group that will have a huge impact on the future of our country and set an example for the rest of the world to see.