At a glance
Two sister marches are scheduled in the area Saturday, Jan. 21, in solidarity with the Women’s March on Washington. More information about all registered marches can be found at www.womensmarch.com. Registration is requested to keep track of the headcount.› Chattanooga: 3 p.m. at Coolidge Park, 150 River St. (changed from Renaissance Park).› Mentone, Ala.: 10 a.m. CST at Town Square Pavilion, 6081 Highway 117 (at state Highway 89); followed by optional lunch at Wolves’ Den Cafe, 5951 state Highway 117.
The Chattanooga Women's March has outgrown its original gathering site.
This sister march to the Women's March on Washington was to start and end at Renaissance Park, but the number of early registrants has necessitated a move to larger Coolidge Park.
"There's just so much interest," says local spokeswoman Shirley Zapf.
The Women's March on Washington is expected to draw hundreds of thousands of people to the nation's capital on Saturday, Jan. 21, the day after President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration. That number will include several hundred men, women and children from the Chattanooga area marching to proclaim that "women's rights are human rights."
The local march, now numbering more than 800, according to the event's Facebook page, is one of 386 solidarity marches around the world this weekend. Another is planned in Mentone, Ala., an artists enclave atop Lookout Mountain.
Tennessee march administrator Lisa Bellino of Chattanooga says the marches are a way to jump-start a national conversation about issues of gender and racial inequality after a polarizing presidential campaign.
As of press time, more than 735,000 people had signed on for the sister marches, which are taking place in all 50 states and Puerto Rico, as well as a global network of cities on six continents.
Zapf says the Chattanooga march will include a few brief comments at Coolidge Park, then participants will cross the Walnut Street Bridge to downtown and return to the park on the Market Street Bridge. The route is about 1.5 miles long, but individuals may walk only partway or stay in the park, as they are able. All ages are welcome.
A news release cites various issues that participants in the local march hope to bring attention to, but the common bond is this: "We all are concerned with the changes in government we see coming and march to show that we will stand together to promote peace, justice and equity for all."
In Mentone, organizer Cathy Haven Howard says the route will cover about four blocks of downtown from the Town Square Pavilion, then return for a rally. Speakers may sign up to make remarks of no more than five minutes.
"We welcome participants, and we figure around 50 people will be marching," she says. "After the rally, those that wish to join us for a lunch at the Wolves' Den restaurant are welcome to continue networking and solidarity."