“Few times in a nation’s history is the conscience of its citizens shocked and awakened – across racial, economic, generational and even ideological – lines. Times when the collective consciousness of a people screams – and demands without apology – that it’s time for a change, that things must be different and that it must start today.” ~ Marc H. Morial, “When People Ask: Why Do We March?”

If you’re like me, you’re still going through the 7 stages of grief to process the outcome of the 2016 Presidential election. For many people who share my political views, there was a sadness in the air, unlike any other period I’ve witness before the days, weeks, and month after a presidential election. It feels like the progress the United States has made towards more inclusiveness is tumbling down before our eyes, and the fact that this week started with the observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and ending with the presidential inauguration of the most unlikeliest and most unqualified person to take the position is a hard pill to swallow.

And if you’re also like me, your inbox is filled with messages from local and national organizations who plan to be at The Women’s March, scheduled for Saturday, January 21st, 2017 in Washington, DC, and in many cities nationally and overseas. The fact that 200 buses have applied for parking for the Inauguration ceremony on Saturday, but over 1200 buses applied for parking the next day for the March  (in addition to over 600 Marches happening simultaneously) is an indicator that this weekend is going to memorable.

While the March itself isn’t exclusively focusing on reproductive health, rights, and justice, it’s important to remember that the day after The Women’s March, January 22nd, marks the 44th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Roe v. Wade (1973), which made abortion legal in the United States. According to a newly released report from the Guttmacher Institute, the U.S. abortion rate hit an historic low in 2014. Some factors include better access to birth control methods and a push for comprehensive sex education, but when states have enacted 231 abortion restrictions since 2010 , the fate of the Affordable Care Act hanging in the balance, and Planned Parenthood gearing up for another government showdown, there’s a lot to be raising our voices for.

But if you’re definitely like me, you probably debated if you actually want to go. The inauguration is on Friday, and the March is the next day, so what would be the point? When I signed up to take one of the buses down to DC, I still was undecided. When I began to hear rumblings about the March, I saw what other women and girls of color saw: a major lack of intersectionality. I didn’t want to attend a March in New York City, let alone DC, if the interests of people who look like me were not going to be centered.

(And the fact that it was initially called the Million Women March? Really?)

So when I saw the March’s leadership shift to Tamika Mallory, Linda Sarsour, and Carmen Perez, women of color from various sectors of social justice movements, I started to feel some relief, but still not sure how they and their team would pull this off. Linda said in a recent interview, “When you’re trying to inspire individuals across the country, you have to have a reflection that people can see themselves in. If you have a march that’s entirely white women, or a march that maybe is entirely black women, it’s going inspire those who look like them, which is fine. Our idea is that we want to inspire as diverse of a group of people as possible.” With partner organizations like Black Girls Rock, Amnesty International, the National Resources Defense Council, Planned Parenthood, the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, the National Association of Social Workers, Black Women’s Blueprint, and more, we started to see more intersectionality in action.

So, why are you marching?

If there’s one silver lining in what occurred in the aftermath of the election, it’s this: People want to do something. People want to make their voices heard more now than ever. These aren’t people who typically identified themselves as activists. These are people whose communities and families were the target of a racist, mysognist, homophobic, Islamaphobic, fear mongering presidential campaign and are concerned about how the next four years are going to look.

On a personal level, I’m marching because, on one hand, I’m heartbroken. All of the issues I can about are going to be front and center with the possibility of being dismantled. On the other hand, we have more power than we think we do. As easily as elected officials in Washington can be voted it, they can easily be voted out. On a professional level, the majority my past and present clients work with communities that the new Administration’s policies will impact the most, and many of them will be marching either in DC or in their own city, and that’s exciting.

Throughout our nation’s history, people have marched when they’re fed up. People have marched because it draws attention to the issues they care about. People have marched because there’s strength in numbers. There’s power in showing up for what you believe in. We didn’t come this far to go back, and we’ll be facing down anyone that threatens to derail it. And that’s why I’m marching.