Beleaguered Women’s March draws a crowd

Hampered by winter weather, the government shutdown, and organizational strife, the annual Women’s March drew a smaller but still sizable crowd Saturday in Washington, D.C. Anger toward President Donald Trump fueled the first march on the day after his inauguration in 2017, but the event has grown to include a variety of causes such as environmentalism, abortion advocacy, immigration reform, and race relations.

Organizers originally planned to gather on the National Mall but decided to relocate because of a forecast for severe winter weather combined with the lack of snow removal services during the government shutdown. An estimated 100,000 protesters packed several blocks around Freedom Plaza, just east of the White House, for the daylong rally in cold temperatures. The march itself took about an hour and only moved about four blocks west along Pennsylvania Avenue past the Trump International Hotel before looping back to Freedom Plaza. Parallel marches took place in dozens of cities across the country, too.

The march suffered this year from dwindling sponsorship and accusations of anti-Semitism and financial mismanagement by its leaders. Groups such as the Democratic National Committee and the NAACP quietly distanced themselves from the event, though Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union maintained their support.