On Saturday, hundreds of marches around the country brought out estimated millions of people. In Talkeetna, around eighty Upper Valley residents marched for a variety of causes, including women’s rights and expressing concern over President Donald Trump. KTNA’s Phillip Manning was at the Talkeetna march, and has this report.
Talkeetna’s march on Saturday was not technically affiliated with the Women’s March on Washington campaign, but the sentiments of some participants were similar. Some participants expressed criticism of newly inaugurated President Donald Trump, while others were focused more on preservation and protection of rights in America.
Al Gallo, who organized the march in Talkeetna, says his focus is on the rights of everyone.
“It’s human rights. It’s not women’s rights. It’s not men’s rights; it’s human rights. It’s all the same.”
Other marchers chose to align themselves with the message of women’s rights that motivated many of the other events across Alaska and the nation. Diane Ziegner says she is continuing on in the tradition of women’s liberation activists who came the generation before her.
“I’m not a women’s libber. My mother was a little before them; I’m a little after them. So, I benefited from the women that did the work, that gave me the rights that I have. I remember that, and I think it’s important that we don’t take that for granted. If we start losing that, we need to get moving.”
Ziegner says she wants to express her feelings toward President Trump’s remarks during the campaign that she believed to be inappropriate.
The message march participant Sarah Kehoe hopes to convey is of compassionate leadership. She references the Christian faith and the example of Saul of Tarsus, the man who became Paul the Apostle in Biblical lore.
“Saul was a very violent leader, and then turned into a peaceful one….I do like that he transformed into a better person, and that’s what I pray for. I pray that our leaders be good leaders and care for us all.”
With the march completed, the next question is what the participants plan to do in order to continue their respective messages. Sarah Kehoe says she intends to speak out and stand up for those in need.
“I think it’s important, still, to speak out and express a different opinion, and to stand up. Particularly, stand up for those that don’t have the privilege. I understand I am white and I’m privileged. I want to make sure I go up to someone who’s being bullied and I stand by them and say, ‘I’m here with you, and I’m going to stand with you and be with you until you’re safe.’”
With regard to the future, march organizer Al Gallo references Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s remarks at Riverside Church in New York City in April of 1967.
“He said that sometimes silence can be betrayal. That’s what I tried to tell folks here….People have to start getting active again.”
Al Gallo estimates that more than eighty people turned out for the march, ranging in age from infants
to septuagenarians.
