The Women’s March on Washington was a wildly successful organized protest movement in the United States of America. The march originated as a protest against the numerous policies, statements, and remarks President Donald J. Trump has made and supported that are misogynist, homophobic, transphobic, xenophobic, racist, and crude. The march occurred on January 21, 2017, the day following the inauguration of Donald Trump, with over a million participants filling the streets of Washington D.C. The marches spilled over to other states and major cities, even internationally, with estimates between 3.5 million to 5 million participants across the globe marking this the largest single-day protest in history to date (Moss & Maddrell, 14). Anybody regardless of sexuality, race, ethnicity, gender identity, and dis/ability were invited to march if they supported the notion that women’s rights are human rights. More specifically, the protest was advocating for the rights, protection, and legislation supporting women’s rights, ending violence and brutality, reproductive rights, LGBTQIA rights, environmental justice, racial equality, dis/ability rights, freedom of religion, and workers’ rights (womensmarch.com). The original intent and the essence of the march was rooted in intersectional and inclusive feminist beliefs and practices, however, as the march grew in popularity and size this important aspect diminished. Despite the original intent of intersectionality as a core tenet of the movement, the Women’s March on Washington adopted many ideals and beliefs set forth by second-wave feminist theories. The election of Donald J.Trump united women and individuals across the United States and the globe as itwas mind-blowing how an individual that had made so many predatorial, misogynistic,racist, and lewd remarks could be elected to the highest office in government.His behavior and remarks are inadmissible and would have most individualsendure grave consequences, however, in this incident the American publicdismissed his remarks by rewarding him presidency. It was this exactcircumstance that had ignited anger across individuals of all demographics inthe United States as this was seen as intolerable.  The protest was absolutely in response to theelection of Donald Trump, however, it is important for it to be noted that themarch was not a protest solely against Trump but rather for advocacy andsolidarity in protecting women’s rights. For many, especially privileged whitewomen, this was one of the first times they had felt first-hand discriminationand degradation so the unity and solidarity within this movement waseye-opening, awakening, and powerful. It was this exact population thatoccupied a vast section of participants and thus their perspective took overthe march by means of social medias, advertising, slogans, signs, andmerchandise. These individuals adopted the same train of thought as popularizedby second-wave feminist theorists Simone de Beauvoir, Betty Friedan, and AnneKoedt, which is what shifted the focus of the protest away from intersectionalbeliefs.Second-Wave Feminism and White WomenSimone de Beauvoir coined the integral belief of second-wave feminism in her book, The Second Sex, when she asserted that women are ‘othered’ and objectified as society views women as inferior to men, however in actuality, women are free and autonomous beings that, according to Beauvoir, “aspire to full membership in the human race” (Beauvoir, 39-40). Her writings brought to light that the status of women in society is ill-founded as women are not any less capable than men despite female anatomy and reproductive capabilities or processes. Betty Friedan built off of Beauvoir’s conclusion by proclaiming that domestication and child-rearing is not the sole and peak purpose of women. Society groomed women by glorifying femininity, which was defined by motherhood and marriage, which left women out of higher education and careers because they were seen as undesirable (Friedan, 17-19). Friedan asserts that this ideal of femininity and womanhood is leaving women feeling unfulfilled and lost as women need more than their children, husbands, and homes (Friedan, 32). Lastly, Anne Koedt confutes Freudian socio-psychoanalysis that is patronizing, phallocentric, and simply incorrect in her writing, The Myth of the Vaginal Orgasm. This piece, like other pieces of second-wave theory, asserts that women are indeed equal and no lesser than men, however, this piece was much more radical for its time as it directly addressed female sexuality in a manner that was for females not for male objectification or pleasure. Freudian socio-psychoanalysis proclaimed that the vagina was shaped so that men, or a penis, could deliver the ultimate pleasure and if this was not the case then the woman was determined to be mentally ill or jealous of men (Koedt, 159). Koedt points out that the majority of female pleasure is derived from the clitoris, as that’s its sole function, whereas the vagina is responsible for reproductive tasks and is highly insensitive (Koedt, 160). Her writings advocate to women that their sexuality is not phallocentric as a penis or man is not important to any aspect of female pleasure. All three of these theorists point out that women have been conditioned, both socially, sexually, and economically, to be of aid to men and that in all three mentioned realms women are justly equal, capable, independent, and deserving as men. As shown by these feministtheories, second-wave feminism advocates for equality from a single-issue lensbased on single-issue oppression. It is important to be noted that certainsecond-wave feminists were completely unaccepting of queer women having a placein the movement and the prospect of race plays a miniscule role in second-wavefeminism. More simply, second-wave feminism is concerned with advocating forthe equality of women in a patriarchal system that consistently favors men andmasculinity. It is this same basis that many individuals, namely white women,joined and advocated for during the 2017 Women’s March on Washington. Thesewomen advocated for the same rights and issues set forth from the movement,however, an intersectional perspective was not advocated for by majority ofthis population. Because of this, the protest promoted messages thatsuperficially touch the real issues at heart by diverting attention away fromthe most marginalized individuals. Loss of IntersectionalityAs stated above, theWomen’s March on Washington gradually became less intersectional as themovement grew and became more mainstream. Disproportionate attention was giventowards white attendees and their messages while people of color, dis/abledindividuals, LGBTQIA and queer identified individuals, and other marginalizedcommunities and individuals did not have the same platform nor was theirmessages embraced and publicized to the same extent.  The protest functioned as its own microcosm ofAmerican society where white cisheteronormative messages were prioritized. Oneof the most popular slogans shouted by participants of the protest was, “Grabthem by the pussy!”. That slogan came from a leaked blurb that Donald Trump hadsaid regarding a woman he found attractive and his tactic in getting the womanto have relations with him. The leaked blurb is absolutely revolting as it isextremely predatorial, sexist, non-consensual, and unacceptable which is whythe Women’s March endorsed the slogan to show how horrific, lewd, andpredatorial the President of the United States is and how prevalent rapeculture is in society. This slogan manifested in the creation of hats, shirts,posters, and other signage signaling outrage while connecting female identity,pride, and womanhood with having a vulva. The march was filled with propagandalike this that only further white cisheteronormative ‘feminist’ messages in ourpatriarchal society. It is conceivable tobelieve many of the attendees that endorsed these white cisheteronormativemessages had no ill-intent or consciousness behind their actions. This isforeseeable as many of these individuals are confronting direct massdiscrimination for the first time as their privilege has guarded them fromthese experiences. Moreover, just like second-wave feminists, these individualsare most concerned with how their gender interacts within patriarchal societyhence their single-issue lens on many topics. However, intersectionalism, acentral tenet of modern-day feminism, states that various forms of socialstratification do not exist separately from one another but interact in acompound manner (Brewer & Dundes, 50). This is the key aspect thatseparates apart the objectives of white feminists that do not see or advocatebeyond their own privilege and more marginalized folks. It is extremelyimportant for white feminists to understand that they are “both oppressed andthe oppressor” (Brewer & Dundes, 50-52). If this was fully understood and embraced,then more marginalized individuals would have had more of a platform andinfluence during the Women’s March. Perhaps then the protest would have thenencapsulated a more pertinent discussion regarding the needs and rights of themost marginalized individuals in our society rather than the comradery broughtabout through pussy hats. The 2017 Women’s March onWashington was revolutionary as millions of individuals stood up againstremarks, policies, and ideals that they saw as unjust and wrong. Millions marchedin solidarity across the United States and globe against sexism, misogyny,homophobia, racism, and bigotry which is a powerful response to the election ofthe President, and the implication or threat of implication of unjust policiesand legislation. However, the march acted as a microcosm of the same societyits protesting by prioritizing the voice of the privileged and whitewashing tomovement while further silencing the most marginalized individuals andcommunities. As explained, the Women’s March on Washington gradually abandonedintersectional beliefs as the movement grew adopted many ideals and beliefs setforth by second-wave feminism.ReferencesBeauvoir, S. D. (1949). The Second Sex.Brewer, S., & Dundes, L. (2018). Concerned, meet terrified: Intersectional feminism and the Womens March. Womens Studies International Forum,69, 49-55. doi:10.1016/j.wsif.2018.04.008Friedan, B. (1963). The Feminine Mystique. New York: W.W. Norton.Koedt, A. (1968). The Myth of the Vaginal Orgasm. Somerville, New England: Free Press.Moss, P., & Maddrell, A. (2017). Emergent and divergent spaces in the Women’s March: The challenges of intersectionality and inclusion. Gender, Place & Culture,24(5), 613-620. doi:10.1080/0966369x.2017.1351509Women’s March on Washington- Our Mission. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.womensmarch.com/mission/Get Help With Your EssayIf you need assistance with writing your essay, our professional essay writing service is here to help!Find out more