It’s January 20, 2018, exactly a year after Donald Trump was inaugurated as president, and the country has never felt more divided in my lifetime. But this didn’t stop tens of thousands of people from marching through the streets of Manhattan demanding equality for ALL women and voicing their disapproval of the current administration and Congress.
As I stood with my diverse group of friends and looked around, I felt the consolation that the many of us who are scared right now need. The march was not just about sparking political fires within its participants but also about letting individuals know that they are not alone in their frustrations.
With some of my best friends, I danced to the drums of a Brazilian ensemble and allowed for the African rhythms to move my body and my soul. I felt so proud to be Black. Yet, when I moved my feet and hips to the revolution’s sound-track, I experienced a certain loneliness that could only be pinpointed to the paramount need for diversity in feminist events.
My voice matters not only because I am a woman but also because I am a Black, multiracial woman. And if me blasting “Formation,” “Blacker the Berry,” and “Respect” wasn’t enough, I shouted my intersectional pride, resilience, and fight from the mountaintops..or at least from 75th street.
– Kiyomi Calloway
