“When women’s rights are under attack, what do we do? Stand up! Fight back!” This was one of the chants led by militant women of WORD, or Women Organized to Resist and Defend, who held a bi-lingual speak-out in front of the BART station at the corner of 24th and Mission streets in San Francisco to celebrate International Women’s Day. The event took place March 8 and drew together women’s rights activists, male allies, and community members in a call for equality and freedom from systematic discrimination for all women.
Meghann Adams of WORD kicked off the speak-out by informing the crowd of supporters and curious bystanders of the history of struggle behind the women’s movement and of the need to remain vigilant in pursuing equality here in the United States, where International Women’s Day lacks proper recognition and escalating attacks on women’s rights have become the norm. “The only way we’ve accomplished anything is women coming together and organizing,” she said.
Nathalie Hrizi, a WORD organizer and local schoolteacher, described the current status of the women’s movement: “We know we have not won full equality. Especially in this country, you are more likely to live in poverty if you are a woman.” She also spoke of the attacks from misogynists of the far-right on women’s reproductive rights, saying, “For me as a mother, they talk about what I can do with my body, yet they could care less about my child’s education and future.”
Brooke Sparling of Friends of the Congo highlighted the struggles of Congolese women in the face of imperialist exploitation. “Hundreds of thousands of women have been murdered and raped in the Congo. Not only is there the raping of women but also the raping of the land by multinational corporations to take the natural resources.” For more info about the struggle of the Congo, visit friendsofthecongo.org .
Tina Landis of the Party for Socialism and Liberation spoke on the need for a new system to achieve women’s liberation: “It is capitalism which is always looking to divide us and exploit us for profit. When we can’t afford health care or childcare, we are less likely to fight back … at least that’s what they think. We can create a socialist system of, by and for the majority instead of a small group of billionaires.”
Some women who just happened to be passing by the event were so inspired by what they saw and heard that they took to the mic themselves. One was a UC Hastings law student, who voiced her support for her transgender siblings, describing how transgender women “have a high chance of being killed on the streets for how they identify” and that many “attempt to take their own lives because of our oppressive system.”
A supporter of the recent struggles against racist oppression here in the U.S. told Liberation News that after she found out about the event she made a point to attend, saying: “It’s something I hold dear to me. I would love to be able to support women in the way I’ve supported the Black Lives Matter movement.”
After the speak-out, WORD activists and others who stuck around to help boarded buses along Mission Street to educate passengers on the women’s struggle, where they were well received. The hard work of the women of WORD brought life and a revolutionary spirit to International Women’s Day in San Francisco at a crucial time in the movement for full reproductive rights, the end to violence against women and the LGBTQ community, equal pay for equal work, and for genuine equality that remains impossible under the profit-driven system of capitalism. WORD hosts monthly volunteer meetings on the second Thursday of every month at 2969 Mission Street, SF at 7 p.m. and encourages anyone looking to get involved to join them in the struggle.
