The Militant(logo) 
    Vol.61/No.39           November 10, 1997 
 
 
Million Woman March Shows Desire To Fight For Rights  

BY BETSY FARLEY AND HATTIE McCUTCHEON
PHILADELPHIA - As the first of hundreds of thousands of march participants reached Ben Franklin Parkway in the early morning rain of October 25, a group of young women broke into a chant that spread through the crowd, "Say it loud - I'm Black and I'm proud!" The Million Woman March was one of the largest gatherings in the history of the city. Most of the marchers were women, and the overwhelming majority were Black.

Although the march received scarce publicity in the major media until just before the date, over a million women filled the streets of Philadelphia. Buses were organized by community groups and students from hundreds of cities.

Many thousands of participants came on their own or with friends and family members. Participants came from as far away as California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Florida, and other countries including Canada, Britain, France, and Jamaica. March organizers estimated the crowd at 2.1 million, while police officials' estimates ranged from 300,000 to 1.5 million.

The massive turnout reflected the depth of the crisis facing Black workers and women in particular. March participants cited issues such as unemployment, resegregation, deterioration of education, the racist judicial system, the high rate of incarceration of Black youth, police brutality, the proliferation of drugs in the Black communities, and the need for respect for Black women as reasons for joining the action.

"I came with my daughter and her daughter," explained Audrey Wallace from East Orange, New Jersey, "for the most part to let people know that women are strong."

Janice and Gloria Williams came on buses filled with hospital workers organized by Service Employees International Union Local 200A in Syracuse, New York. "This march is long overdue," Janice Williams said. "The issues we need to deal with as women are jobs, health care, child care, education, and of course racism. Racism is issue number one."

Buses were also organized by the United Auto Workers in Edison, New Jersey, and Cleveland, Ohio. Some in the crowd were wearing union jackets or hats from the United Steelworkers of America; the Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Workers; and other unions.

Cindy Thornton traveled 36 hours on a bus with 46 students from Langston University in Langston, Oklahoma. "Langston is the only Black college in Oklahoma," she said. "We came because we've got to learn to put aside our differences and work together as Black women."

Another student, Virengia Houston from the University of South Carolina at Columbia, said, "The main issues facing Black women are equal pay and job discrimination."

The action was initiated by Philadelphia activists Phile Chionesu and Asia Coney. Chionesu, who owns a store that sells books and African artifacts, has been involved in defending death row prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal, and Coney is active in a tenant rights group. The 12 "platform issues" put forward by the organizers included questions of homelessness, prison reform, the creation of Black independent schools, drugs, and encouraging Black women to start their own businesses.

One of the keynote speakers at the rally was Rep. Maxine Waters, a Democratic Party congresswoman from California and president of the Congressional Black Caucus. Waters called for investigation into allegations of CIA responsibility for the crack cocaine trade in the Black communities, one of her main themes over the last year.

Winnie Madikizela-Mandela from South Africa also addressed the crowd. Other speakers included Rep. John Conyers, a Democrat from Michigan; Leona Smith, president of the National Union of Homeless; Khadijah Farrakhan, wife of Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan; and rap artist Sista Souljah.

Ramona Africa and Pam Africa, leaders of the defense effort for Mumia Abu-Jamal, also addressed the gathering. Abu-Jamal is a Philadelphia Black rights activist who was framed up on murder charges and is currently on death row.

Karen Murphy-Smith from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, stood on a corner at the march collecting names of women who had traveled from different states to attend the march. "So far I have talked to women from every state except Mississippi," she said. "This is the first time in the history of America that women of African descent have put aside religious and political differences to join together as one," Murphy-Smith continued. "We fought the civil rights movement to get where we are today. Now we have to fight again, against a new form of enslavement they call welfare reform."

Hattie McCutcheon is a member of United Auto Workers Local 1069.  
 
 
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