On the Subject of Women('s Marches)

In On the Subjection of Women, Mills argues from both a practical and moral standpoint that the repression of women has to end.  One, he says, a more educated woman will better be able to benefit society (and specifically her husband, since he knew his audience probably consisted of some misogynists).  Two, he says, women deserve rights because they're people and they have brains too.

I appreciated how the timing of our reading On the Subjection of Women lined up nicely with the recent Women's March.

First, an interesting fact about one of the first organized women's marches: the Women's March on Versailles on October 5, 1789.



In 1789, about 7,000 working women marched from Paris to Versailles to demand bread.  The people, at this point in the Revolution, were starving, and Marie Antoinette's supposed remark, "Let them eat cake" was probably not so helpful.  The women ordered King Louis XVI to give the people bread, allow for the August Decrees and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, and come back to Paris with them so that he could see firsthand just how wretched and miserable conditions were for the common people.  So, this march was extremely influential in ending the monarchy and bringing about more democratic change in France and across Europe, including demands for more gender equality in matters such as education, voting, etc.  These mobilized women brought with them the realization that women are important and strong and can enact change too.

Back to present-day.  Most of y'all hopefully know about the 2017 Women's March on Washington (with worldwide sister marches) last January.  It was largely aimed against Trump's policies and what he represents to many people.  The official goal was: "protection of our rights, our safety, our health, and our families—recognizing that our vibrant and diverse communities are the strength of our country" and to send a message that "women's rights are human rights."    Apparently it was the largest single-day protest in U.S. history!

And just a few days ago was the Women's March 2018, which also took place globally.  I read that the one in Austin, Texas was the largest the city has had.  Millions turned out across the United States, and a lot of the marches continued past Day 1.

To close, I really like this quote and sign that showed up a lot in the marches, featuring the image of Carrie Fisher as Leia from Star Wars (I have a magnet with these words hanging up in my locker, actually, that I got over the summer):