I Did Not Get to March

By: Lesa Quale Ferguson | Posted January 25th, 2017

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I did not get to march. Oh, how I wanted to. A friend had invited me to stay with her in Washington DC where the Women’s March on Washington took place on January 21st. I passed. I wanted to march at home among my community. Given how many women felt impelled to travel to DC, I knew something historic was afoot. I am grateful to those who used their resources to stand up, speak out, and demonstrate. Proud too of my friends, family, and community allies who took the trip, and those who marched in other cities.

But I turned my sites on The No Hate, No Mandate March hosted by The WNY Peace Center. This sister march began at The 9th Ward and continued to Niagara Square where a rally was held. From all accounts it was enlivening, inspiring, and empowering.

At the rally, a slew of notable local activists spoke to the crowd from the WNY Peace Center, Planned Parenthood, Black Lives Matter, Buffalo Anti-Racism Coalition, PUSH Buffalo, the Pride Center of WNY, Indigenous Women’s Initiatives, Concerned Clergy of WNY, the Sierra Club, New Yorkers Against Gun Violence, Veterans for Peace, We are Women Warriors, and Citizen Action. Social activism has quickened in response to the presidential inauguration. For those who have been working tirelessly for years, I hope the turnout refreshed them. For the rest of us, I hope this march was a call to action. Ismail and Company, My Rap Name is Alex, La Marimba, and Erin Bahm performed to a crowd of approximately 3,000 demonstrators.

On the No Hate, No Mandate Facebook page, Susie Zen, a participant, wrote:

We were Blessed with Sunshine & a balmy 58 degrees @Buffalo's #NoHateNoMandate March! Even a Buffalo Police Woman had a Smile for our Camera ;-) The Crowd was Peaceful, Positive & Extremely Uplifting!

The morning of the march, I sat in my mother’s house with my injured leg propped up, I bemoaned the fact that I could not attend and championed those who were on their way to the 9th Ward with their handmade signs, pink knitted “pussy hats", and sturdy shoes. After politely enduring my expounding, my mother and aunts promptly took their cue to go and join in.

At the rally, Trudy Cusella, my mother, was so taken with the message on the signs that she wrote some of the them down. Her favorite was: “No matter where you come from, I’m happy to be your neighbor.” The sign was displayed in three languages.

Here are others:

A woman acting alone is fierce. Women acting together is a force.
Strong Women, Raise Them, Know Them, Am One.
“I am no longer accepting the things I cannot change. I am changing the things I cannot accept.” Angela Davis.
You can’t comb-over sexism.
Nasty woman raising a bad hombre.
Mamas marching for our daughters.
Our children are watching.
Buffalove Trumps Hate.
Fight like a girl.
Fight like Hill.
Men of quality don’t fear equality.
We can kiss who we want to kiss.
They tried to bury us. They didn’t know we were seeds.

Read all together, these signs sound like lyrics to a song.

I reached out to two local photographers: Chris Kaliskiak and Sam Levine. Kaliskiak’s photographs captured community - the brightness, liveliness and enriching aspects of the day; in contrast Levine’s photos were portraits of individual voice and commitment.

Yes, I wish I could have marched, but more than that I'm glad there was a march - here, there, and around the country.

Sam James Levine - samjameslevine.com