Just before 10 a.m. on Saturday morning, hundreds of protesters gathered outside the Everson Museum of Art for the 2019 Women’s March Syracuse — a mere 18 hours after organizers had officially received their rally permit.

The delayed process came as a result of the federal government shutdown, leaving event organizers attempting several methods before finally securing their city authorization.

“It was a lot of us, working hard,” said Nodesia Hernandez, a New York state-certified paralegal and one of the event’s organizers. “It was hard work.”

In a span of only two weeks, Hernandez and other volunteer organizers coordinated the Women’s March Syracuse — independent from the national Women’s March — in an effort to “celebrate the diversity of Syracuse.” Despite snowy conditions and below-freezing temperatures, about 700 people gathered at the Everson Museum Plaza for a one-mile walk to the University United Methodist Church on East Genesee Street.

Nodesia Hernandez, one of the event’s organizers, said her scarf features red, blue and beige, rather than white, to recognize the changing demographics in the United States. Corey Henry | Staff Photographer

Some marched for reproductive rights and pay equity, while others joined today’s rally in solidarity with members of the LGBTQ, immigrant and refugee communities. Some protesters added they were tired of the state of the current presidential administration.

“We have to keep up the pressure on this administration,” said Maria Norris, a senior film student at Syracuse University’s School of Visual and Performing Arts and member of the International Socialist Organization-Syracuse. “We can’t get desensitized to what’s happening, even if it’s happening every single week.”

For Nada Odeh, a Syrian artist and the lead event organizer, issues surrounding President Donald Trump’s travel ban hit close to home.

“For me, it was hard to get involved with the first march,” Odeh said, since the first-year Women’s March was “a stressful time” because of the political atmosphere. She had never been heavily involved with political activism before, but she decided to get involved this year after politics prevented her family from coming to the United States.

Nada Odeh began organizing the 2019 Women’s March Syracuse about two weeks ago, with the intent to make this year’s event a celebration of intersectionality. Corey Henry | Staff Photographer

Odeh graduated with a master’s degree in museum studies at SU in spring 2018. Her mother’s visa was rejected prior to her graduation ceremony.

“It was a very painful moment for me because I was hoping to have her see me graduate and that she’d be part of my celebration,” Odeh said in an interview a few days before the march. At the event Saturday, Odeh shared with the crowd how difficult it was to talk with her mother on the phone that day — her mother was in tears, she said.

When planning the march, Odeh said the goal was to reflect the Syracuse community by inviting speakers and performers who represent all voices within the city. Syracuse has 86 spoken languages, Odeh said, which aren’t widely represented by the city.

Odeh’s activism runs in the family. Her daughter, Mariam Sarraj, helped plan the event and was one of two banner holders at the front of the march. The banner, a patchwork-inspired poster created by volunteer Patricia Szlamczynski Stassi, read “Women’s March Toward Intersectionality Syracuse 2019.”

“To me, the march isn’t the culmination of our efforts,” Stassi said. “It’s the beginning.”

For Odeh, it’s important to help young activists, like her daughter, since “they are the future.” She likened activism between generations to relay races in the Olympics, where athletes must collaborate to be able to pass the torch.

Odeh’s commitment to supporting youth in the community is evident in her recruitment of Max Mimaroglu, who turned 16 years old this week. Mimaroglu said he wanted to use his previous experience from working for the Syracuse-based March for Our Lives that took place last March to ensure this demonstration went as smoothly as possible.

Due to the government shutdown, Mimaroglu was in charge of scouting where the event could take place. While Mimaroglu was heavily involved in the committee, he said he wanted the event to focus solely on the speakers and their stories.

“I think ideally, in a perfect world, we would have a committee solely made of women … Ran for women, by women,” Mimaroglu said. “Hopefully and eventually … it can be 100 percent women-led.”

One young Syracuse-raised woman, Nottingham High School student Brynn Murphy-Stanley, said this year’s march is more inclusive than previous women’s marches but still needs improvement. She said marches such as these are easier for white women to participate in but less accommodating for women of color who work.

Her sister, Aydan, a psychology and European history major at SU, said there is a split between SU and the city of Syracuse — a divide between the wealth of the school and the city’s poverty.

“I know there is some tendency with SU kids to kind of view SU and Syracuse as two separate things,” Aydan said. “But we’re so close to campus that I don’t think they can ignore this.”

Brynn Murphy-Stanley, a student at Nottingham High School, has attended previous marches in Syracuse with her family. Molly Gibbs | Photo Editor

Participants in Saturday’s march included men, women, children and non-binary individuals ranging in age. While the list of guest speakers for the demonstration included people from various racial, ethnic, cultural and professional backgrounds, the majority of activists were white.

Although this year’s march attracted a younger generation of activists, one group of participants has been marching together for decades — since the 1960s and early 1970s. Kip Monaco, a Syracuse resident, and a few of her friends began engaging in protests during the Vietnam War.

“I think it’s bubbled up again like it did in the ‘60s,” Monaco said. “It may be even stronger in some ways because we’re being pulled in a direction that’s negative and upsetting and doesn’t sit right with our nation’s ideals and our own personal ideals.”

While the majority of protestors were women, men like Corbin Bryant marched for the women in his life. Bryant said he was marching today to emphasize women’s right to healthcare. He reflected on a time when his mother had to support his family while also battling breast cancer.

“I would hope that all the women in my life get the healthcare they need,” Bryant said.

After a half-hour-long walk that crossed under Interstate 81, protesters congregated in University United Methodist Church. March organizers, activists and guest speakers filtered into pews and lined the chapel walls. Behind the podium, rainbow-colored flags were draped over the altar.

Guest speakers included community members and local politicians, each sharing their insight regarding current issues and hopes for the movement going forward. Khadijo Abdulkadir, an international relations major at SU and founder of the New American Women’s Empowerment, said she embraces her identity as a Somali Muslim woman despite current stereotypes against her religion and nationality.

“When they ask, ‘Are you proud to be an American?’ I say, ‘I will be proud when you are proud to have me,’” she said while addressing the crowd.

Khadijo Abdulkadir, an international relations major at SU and the founder of the New American Women’s Empowerment, spoke about her experience as a Somali Muslim woman in the current political climate. Corey Henry | Staff Photographer

Joseph Driscoll, Syracuse’s 5th district Common Councilor, spoke on behalf of the city’s racial segregation and class disparity as a result of I-81, urging attendees to rally behind the proposed community grid option. Following his speech, Driscoll pulled out his guitar and played a cover of Buffalo Springfield’s anti-war anthem, “For What It’s Worth,” as the crowd sang in harmony.

The youngest speaker, Amiah Crisler, a sixth grader from Edward Smith Pre-K-8 School, spoke of the generations of activists who came before her — Harriet Tubman, Rosa Parks, Ruby Bridges and Audre Lorde — who each inspire her artistry.

“We march to tell young girls and women they are not alone,” she said. “We march because women marched yesterday so we could march today.”

People cheered and she broke a smile.

The crowd delivered a standing ovation as she finished her speech and more applause filled the chapel.

Her father, Shaun Crisler, said while Amiah may be too young to fully grasp everything that was said at the march, hearing from other women at this age may help shape her worldview.

“I think when you’re younger, it’s easier to learn this kind of stuff rather than when you’re older. It’s not gonna stick in your head or matter as much,” Amiah said after her speech. She also shared her hopes for Syracuse and how the city can work toward solutions for issues like gang violence.

11-year-old Amiah Crisler spoke about the importance of black women figures like Harriet Tubman and Rosa Parks in pioneering cultural change. Corey Henry | Staff Photographer

Hernandez, taking to the podium one final time, pointed to the American flag scarf wrapped around her neck. In place of the traditional white stars and stripes, hers featured beige mixed with shades of red and blue — a symbolic nod to the different racial and ethnic identities interwoven into the fabric of the United States.

As the demonstration came to a close, the words of Maya Angelou’s “Phenomenal Woman,” recited by Hernandez, echoed through the halls of University United Methodist Church.

“‘Cause I’m a woman, phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, that’s me.”

— Managing Editor Aishwarya Sukesh contributed reporting to this article.

Published on January 19, 2019 at 10:05 pm

Contact Kelsey: katho101@syr.edu | @writtenbykelsey