By Chinta Strausberg
The more than 3.5 million mostly women who globally protested President Trump was a sign of complete “repudiation” of an administration bent on turning the clock back on civil, human and women’s rights but who will be resisted, Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr., said late Tuesday night.
He made his comments during the taping of his “Upfront” show scheduled to air 9 p.m., Saturday, January 28, 2017, on the Word Network. He was joined by Marlyn Katz, chair of the Chicago Women Take Action; Jaquie Algee, vice president, director of Community Relations SEIU Healthcare IL; Faith Arnold, co-chair, Child Care Division, executive board members, SEIU Healthcare IL; Lakesia Collins, nursing home organizer, SEIU; Betty Magness, Illinois political director for PUSH and Rev. Janette Wilson, senior national advisor to Rev. Jackson.
It was Wilson who keynoted the women’s march last Saturday where she told more than 250,000 mostly women, “Today, we are challenged to move from disappointment and disillusionment to direct action.”
Wilson said it is they “who are the vessels through which Americans are brought into existence…are the countries’ first educators…nutritionists…the ones who set the moral compass before our children and our families.
“We are here today because we are 89 percent of the homecare workers, 91 percent of the nursing assistants, 96 percent of child care workers and 47 percent of all union workers.
Why did the women march? Wilson said it was out of concern for equal pay for equal work, the closing of mental health facilities, public schools and expanding jails. It is because of Trumps appointment of Jeff Sessions for U.S. Attorney General a man she says “does not have a history of concern for civil and human rights and the preservation of the rule of law for all people.”
Wilson blasted Trump’s move to dismantle the Affordable Care Act (ACA) she says will result in 20 million people living again without health insurance.
And then there is the issue of Trump’s vow to deport 12 million parents “who are labeled undocumented thereby disrupting families…. As we march in Chicago and around the world we set before this administration a plumb line of justice. We will monitor your actions at the federal state, county and city level.
“We will march while you celebrate personal victories at the expense of those who live on the margins. We march because our marching feet represent our resistance to oppression…” said Wilson.
Jackson joins many activists in commending the women, and some men, who took to the streets around the world including Chicago protesting his promise to end the ACA, better known as Obamacare, restructure Medicare, and end funding for healthcare that includes abortion.
One of the main reasons the women launched a global protest was Trump’s vow to eliminate the ACA. Peoples’ lives are at stake,” said Jackson.
Pastor Ira Acree, who heads the Greater St. John’s Bible Church, said, “On one hand it’s very troubling that many voters in America are attempting to close the political barn door after the horse is gone.
“Watching the women’s marches as a delegate of Hillary Rodham Clinton, I couldn’t help but wonder where in the world was this passion on or before November 8th.
“Trump is president now, at least for four years. As I reflect more on it, I do believe however that the marches can serve a significant purpose,” said Pastor Acree.
“With a reckless maniac such as the commander in chief in the white house, it’s imperative that we press, push and protest, so that we can be assured that he doesn’t over turn the civil and human rights gained over the last 50 years,” said Acree.
“The protests send a resounding message to Trump, that we won’t take his fascist dictatorial type leadership sitting down. It also communicates to congress that if you support Trump’s racist, misogynistic, homophobic, and xenophobic policies, there will be hell to pay,” Pastor Acree stated.
The American Federation of Government Employees, headed by J. David Cox, Sr., blasted Trump for issuing a federal hiring freeze saying “it will have a significant impact on the services provided to the public. It would mean longer lines at Social Security offices, fewer workplace safety inspections, less oversight of environmental polluters and a greater risk to our nation’s food supply and clean water systems.”
Rev. Tyrone McGowan, who teaches financial literacy at PUSH, keynoted Saturday’s broadcast. He too took on Trump. “And as we enter this Post Obama era, it may seem like after the progress we have made as a people and as a nation, we are going backward.
“Yes, the progress we have made in the past 8 years and the past 50 years is under assault,” said McGowan. “All that we have fought for…voting rights…affordable health care, equal pay for equal work, fair economic policies, and environmental sustainability all now seem under attack.
“And for the past 18 months we have witnessed a campaign fueled by the flames of fear, division and bigotry.” McGowan referred to Trump’s controversial inaugural address saying, “instead of trying to unite the country, the president doubled down on this divisive rhetoric. In this season, I don’t want us to languish around the mountain of despair.
“Despite the challenges that are before us, we still have the capacity to build a stone of hope and move the place of promise God has called us to,” McGowan stated.
Rev. Jackson said Trump “may be the captain of the ship, but the winds of justice are blowing…” He said the ship will jack knife.
Chakraborty said the woman have 10 actions for the first 100 days after Saturday’s march. They will release one of the ten actions every ten days the first being to ask supporters to write a postcard to their senators about what matters most to them. You can download the official postcard at www.womensmarchcom/100.
