On Friday night, Donald Trump placed his hand on a bible and took the Oath of Office to become the 45th President of the United States of America.
On Saturday, 15,700km away, more than 3000 people filled the streets of the Sydney CBD for the Women’s March, a grassroots movement that began in Washington D.C. and spread around the world.
Yes, many were there to protest against Trump’s ascension. But for most it was a chance to promote the unity, equality, diversity that were so overlooked during the election cycle, to ensure the voices of the marginalised are heard and to send a message to the new ‘leader of the free world’ that human rights are not selective.
Mamamia was among the crowd in Sydney, and spoke to a handful of those attending. We asked them one simple question: Why are you marching?
Theresa.
“I’m marching today because I’m an American living abroad and I feel like I need to do as much as I can from here for everybody living at home. There are a lot of echoes of what Trump says in politicians here, so I also feel like it’s a very common cause.”
Deborah.
"I'm here to support equality, to support women and to really have an active presence in response to the recent Presidential election and now inauguration of Trump. I'm pretty much against 100 per cent of his policies around immigration and Planned Parenthood, and how that impacts the rest of the world. Rather than being shutdown by what's happened, being here is my way of being an active citizen of Australia and the world."
Becky.
"I am here to support women. I'm particularly here to support women and children who are caught up in a Family Court situation... We are still in the system after six years, my family, and that's not in the best interest of the child."
Some of the best signs we spotted at Women's March Sydney.