‘A Day Without a Woman’: Strikes, rallies, political action

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Led by the same organization that created the Women’s March on Washington, this time the group is urging women to refrain from any kind of labor or spending to show the value of women on March 8, 2017.
USA TODAY NETWORK

« A Day Without a Woman » unfolded across the USA on Wednesday with strikes and rallies as organizers called on women to skip work and not spend money to demonstrate their economic strength and political clout.

Women in more than 50 countries hosted similar events to coincide with the U.N.-designated International Women’s Day, according to the event‘s Facebook page.

Rallies were planned across the country, including: New York; San Francisco; Philadelphia; Pittsburgh; Washington, D.C.; Ann Arbor, Mich.; St. Petersburg, Fla.; Raleigh, N.C.; Portland, Ore. Some colleges, such as Rutgers University in New Jersey, will also stage walkouts and marches.

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In Washington, a buoyant crowd in the hundreds from the Resist Trump/Kill the Gag rally marched up 15th Street to Lafayette Square directly in front of the White House. Chants of « shame on him, » « our lives, our bodies » cut through the air. Many are upset over President Trump’s global gag order that bans U.S. funds to foreign groups for abortion services.

Ruth Von Fleckenstein, 76, and husband Fritz, 77, sat on a park bench listening to cheers from the crowd as impassioned speakers talked about women’ rights.

« We have been longtime supporters of Planned Parenthood and the gag order is messing up programs in lots of countries, » Ruth said. « I am concerned about the effects on the reproductive health of mothers, the welfare of families and women forced to bear children they can’t support. »

The event is a followup to January’s Women’s March, when millions of supporters flooded streets and squares around the globe. Organizers for Wednesday’s gatherings said they want to “stand with women around the globe” who supported their efforts Jan. 21 with similar protests in cities around the world on the day after Trump’s inauguration.

Organizers encouraged supporters to wear red, a symbol of « revolutionary love and sacrifice », even if they couldn’t participate directly.

« When millions of us stood together in January, we saw clearly that our army of love greatly outnumbers that of fear, greed and hatred, » organizers said on their website. « Let’s raise our voices together again, to say that women’s rights are human rights, regardless of a woman’s race, ethnicity, religion, immigration status, sexual identity, gender expression, economic status, age or disability. »

According to the U.S. Census, women make up more than 47% of the workforce and are dominant among registered nurses, dental assistants, cashiers, accountants and pharmacists, the Associated Press notes. They make up at least a third of physicians and surgeons, and the same with lawyers and judges. Women also represent 55% of all college students.

At the same time, American women earn 80 cents for every dollar a man makes. The median income for women was $40,742 in 2015, compared with $51,212 for men, according to Census data.

Spokeswoman Cassady Findlay said organizers found inspiration in the “Day Without an Immigrant” protests held last month. “We provide all this value and keep the system going, and receive unequal benefits from it,” she said.

Findlay also said it is important for white women to stand in solidarity with minority women.

“Throughout history, the strikes that have the biggest impact are the ones when people who are already the target of oppression participate,” she said. “It’s when women of all backgrounds strike and stand together that we’re really going to see the impact.”

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In Maryland, Prince George’s County schools closed after some 1,700 teachers and 30% of its transportation staff requested leave for the day. « We cannot transport students and provide safe, productive learning environments without adequate staff, » the school district said in a statement explaining its decision.

Public schools also closed in Alexandria, Va., across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C., along with Chapel Hill-Carrboro Schools in North Carolina.

In Washington, Barbara and John Balducci, visiting the nation’s capital from Atlanta, arrived early, also sporting red at Freedom Plaza — the gathering point for a women’s rally.

Barbara, who marched in a January women’s march in Providence, R.I., said the couple felt compelled to participate. From abortion to health care to women’s rights — « all of it » is a concern with the Trump administration, she said.

« We wouldn’t be so angry if Trump was doing something more positive,  » she said. « We see the country more divided than ever. »

Sally Kline was protesting many things, but the global gag rule that Trump signed on day three of his presidency — was a high priority.

« With a stroke of a pen, he led to the death of thousands of women, » she said, noting the rule’s impact on health care. « Just having a baby in other parts of the world is a life-threatening phenomenon. »

In Knoxville, Tenn., the Women’s March Coalition of East Tennessee planned a downtown rally at the women’s suffrage statue on Market Square.

Participants were encouraged to wear red and share names and stories of inspirational women on the coalition’s “Wall of SHEroes, » according to a post on the coalition’s website.

In Utah, as many as 1,000 women were expected to gather at the Capitol to remind lawmakers they are watching their actions on women’s issues.

In Providence, R.I., the municipal court planned to close because the demonstration in the city would leave the court without enough staff to open. Lovely Monkey Tattoo, a woman-owned tattoo parlor in Whitmore Lake, Mich., offered female-centric tattoos with messages like, “Nevertheless, She Persisted” for $50 to $100, with proceeds going to the Ann Arbor chapter of Planned Parenthood.

While not mentioning the demonstrations, Trump took to Twitter on Wednesday and asked followers to join him in “honoring the critical role of women” in the U.S. and around the world. He tweeted that he has “tremendous respect for women and the many roles they serve that are vital to the fabric of our society and our economy.”

Ivanka Trump echoed her father’s sentiments, tweeting: “Today, we celebrate women and are reminded of our collective voice and the powerful impact we have on our societies and economies.”

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Among events worldwide:

• In Moscow, four activists who sneaked into the Kremlin grounds to demonstrate were arrested along with two reporters and a photographer for the newspaper Novaya Gazeta. The demonstrators carried slogans, including « Men out of the Kremlin » and « All Power — women, » according to the newspaper.

Officially, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev approved a five-year national action plan supporting women’s interests. Valentina Matvienko, who as speaker of the upper house of parliament is one of Russia’s most prominent female politicians, calls the strategy a “gift to all the women of Russia.”

• In Madrid, about 200 people gathered in central Puerta del Sol to mark International Women’s Day and support a group of women who, a day earlier, ended a hunger strike to demand politicians’ action against domestic violence.

Rights organizations called for women to dress in black outfits and stop working, studying, consuming or taking care of others in order to show what would happen if women disappeared, a worldwide initiative launched under the slogan “Not One Woman Less.”

• In Manila, Philippines, hundreds of activists from left-wing women’s groups protested at the U.S. Embassy, where they burned a mock U.S. flag with President Trump’s image, before joining a bigger rally outside the presidential palace.

In both rallies, demonstrators demanded an end to the presence of visiting U.S. troops and a crackdown against illegal drugs by President Rodrigo Duterte that has left thousands of drug suspects dead. The protesters hit a huge paper mask made in the likeness of Duterte as they ranted against an array of issues, including a lack of jobs, poverty and violence against women.

• In Sweden, the women’s football team marked the day by replacing the names on the back of their jersey’s with tweets from Swedish women “who have struggled to gain ground in their respective field.”

• In Germany, six all-female crews from Lufthansa, Swiss, Austrian and Brussels airlines planned to make their morning flights from the Lufthansa Group hubs to Berlin, Lufthansa said in a statement. The aircraft departing from Frankfurt, Munich, Düsseldorf, Vienna, Zurich and Brussels were each scheduled to be flown by two female pilots.

Contributing: Susan Miller, in Washington; Associated Press

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