On Saturday January 21, over 300,000 people gathered in the streets of New York to share a dream of equality and acceptance. Marches took place around the country as a way to peacefully spread the message that women, LGBTQ+ people, and other minorities will not be silenced in the face of discrimination.

I had the privilege of being a part of the New York march. I travelled with about 8 other girls on a trip organized by the school. Worries among us were that people would lose sight of the march’s original message and it would become more of a riot, and everyone was a bit tense on the car ride to the train station.

Once we got on the train, we began to see the signs. “Our bodies, Our minds, Our power,” and “Unite the State of America.” From the train cars to Grand Central and to the streets there were people packed in, shoulder to shoulder. Everyone was ready to protest, and as a group our excitement began to overshadow our fears.

When we stepped outside for the first time there were drums and music and a faint chant of “not my president” in the background. However, the atmosphere was much calmer than any of us expected. Out of all the 300,000 men, women and children that I could have encountered, I did not see one angry face, no yelling, and no rioting.

Besides the occasional chanting, everyone was fairly quiet and we marched slowly, only walking about a block an hour. There was a sort of ineffable peace through the crowd. Lydia Griggs-Demmin ‘17 said the this atmosphere made her feel “Better. The fact that this many people care about equality, and are willing to stand here, peacefully, for hours so that our voices can be heard is amazing.”

No one was arrested that day, and it was a family-friendly environment. Though people marched for different reasons, there was an enormous amount of kindness and support. I spoke to a woman in the march who said that “While [she] doesn’t support Trump, [she] could not think of a better way to kick off his presidency than this.