Thousands of American women march for their rights

Photo: Jemal Countess Getty Images via Agence France-Presse Protesters lead the “We Will Not Go Back” march in Washington, D.C.

Lucie Aubourg – Agence France-Presse in Washington

Published at 20:46 Updated at 22:01

• United States

“Voting prevents unwanted presidencies”: thousands of women gathered in the streets of Washington on Saturday, brandishing eloquent signs three days before the American presidential election, to show their support for Kamala Harris against Donald Trump.

The Democratic candidate has made the defense of abortion rights a central theme of her campaign, and it is the one that comes up on the lips of all the demonstrators taking part in this “women's march”.

“Voting for the candidate who will support our rights as women is the most important thing for me,” Leah Brooker, 19, who came from North Carolina for the occasion, told AFP.

Photo: Jemal Countess Getty Images via Agence France-Presse Referendums on abortion rights are being held in 10 states on Tuesday, in parallel with the presidential election.

She who voted early in this key state was pleased to have been able to give her voice to a woman for her first vote in a presidential election.

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In her hands alongside her best friend, she holds a carefully crafted sign: “If guys will stay guys, then women will be president,” it reads.

On a stage set up on the “Freedom Plaza,” speakers took turns calling for votes for the 60-year-old Democratic candidate, with the dome of the U.S. Congress in the background.

“We will not go back!” chanted the crowd, adopting one of Kamala Harris’ campaign slogans.

According to organizers, 15,000 people were present.

Among them was Marlene Wagner, 70, who flew in from Nebraska to attend the event. She says she is here “for my grandchildren and my children, because I fear for their future.”

In her state, the right to abortion has been restricted to 12 weeks of pregnancy maximum, after the American Supreme Court, profoundly reworked by Donald Trump, reversed federal protection for voluntary termination of pregnancy (IVG).

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“50% of the population”

Referendums on abortion rights are being held in 10 states on Tuesday in parallel with the presidential election. In Nebraska, one proposal seeks to enshrine the new restriction in the state constitution, while another seeks to extend the length of time allowed for an abortion. For Marlene Wagner, the choice was easy to make.

The restrictions have “already had an impact, because women have not been able to get the care they need,” laments the woman who also came to the first women’s march in 2017, which followed Donald Trump’s inauguration and brought together hundreds of thousands of people.

This time again, we could see “pussy hats,” pink hats with cat ears, in reference to a crude expression of the former Republican president.

In Washington, a few counter-protesters accusing Kamala Harris of being a “baby killer” also tried to make themselves heard on Saturday, even if women struggled to cover their voices and their signs.

Donald Trump is “very dangerous” and “does not take women into consideration,” accuses Abby Cohen, 66 years old, not far from a family planning booth. “We are 50% of the population.”

In three days, “I hope all the women vote for Harris,” the New Yorker muses, just before the crowd marches to a lawn across from the White House. “But I hope all the men vote for Harris, too.”