Hundreds of people turned out in the bitter cold and snow on Saturday in Seneca Falls for the 3rd annual Women March. It was held in conjunction with events around the country with marchers advocating for women, immigrants, people of color and LGBTQ rights.
The starting point for Saturday’s events had to be changed due to the partial government shutdown. A morning rally at the Women's Rights National Historical Park was moved two blocks down Fall Street to Trinity Park.
The march had special significance for many of those attending since Seneca Falls is the same place where the first women’s rights convention was held in 1848.
Congressman Joe Morelle (D-Irondequoit), was among those taking part. The newly elected representative said that now more than ever, Americans are confronting forces that “that threaten to roll back some of the most basic and essential rights of women, we must renew our commitment to protecting access to reproductive health services, securing equal pay, ensuring workplace rights, and strengthening protections for victims of domestic abuse and sexual harassment.”
The first Seneca Falls Women March in 2017 drew an estimated 10,000 people. In 2018, 15,000 attended. Unlike the last two years, organizers had to contend with a major winter storm bearing down on the region.