March is National Women's History Month and on Saturday, the 6th annual San Luis Obispo's Women’s March took place at Mitchell Park.
A march dedicated to creating a women-friendly world, where women are truly equal, that’s the mission of SLO's annual Women’s March.
“We will not be pushed under the rug, we will not be silenced or ignored, we will be loud we will be proud. We will unite together and fill the air with power, diversity, love, and change, and they will hear us all the way to Washington," said Eve Barajas during her speech at the march.
Every year the march is represented by a theme, this year’s theme was “engage for equity."
“Unless we remain engaged, and continue to do the work every day, we can really achieve peace and justice and a positive future we are hoping to live in," said co-founder of SLO's Women's March, Andrea Chmelik.
Speakers at the event said the fuel behind this march isn’t just for women but for equality for the LGBTQ community, people of color, and immigrants.
“Today we unite to create safe spaces for LGBTQ youth, to create safe spaces for young women and safe spaces for young POC," said Barajas.
This year there was an extra reason to fight for, the war on Ukraine.
“When the events of the Ukrainian invasion happened we knew we had to speak up and we knew we had address what was happening in Ukraine and what this meant for us and the rest of the world," said Chmelik.
“For all of our loved ones whose physical presence we so miss, but also for the many Ukrainian hearts that are hurting today that I ask you for a moment of silence," said Wendy Lucas during her speech at the march.
Organizers of the rally say that a portion of the funds collected at the event will be donated to an organization that is based in Slovakia and is helping Ukrainian refugees cross the border to safety.
For other participants, it was a chance to be heard and come together as a community.
“I think we need to stand up more, like I wish there were a few more people here because I think it’s really important to do this, to be heard," said Alida Laursen.
