The Women’s March: Co-Founder Carmen Perez on Starting a Movement

1. As one of the co-founders of the Women’s March, what is the most surprising thing you learned about starting a national movement?

This wasn’t the first time I was involved in starting a national movement, but it was the first time I was involved in starting a movement that was specifically feminist and woman-led. What surprised me most was the ways that women are talked about, rather than to, and how much harder we have to work to be taken seriously. I was also surprised by how hungry women were, worldwide, to be part of a movement. I was shocked at the sheer number of women–over 5 million globally–that showed up to make sure their rights were respected.

In the aftermath of the first Women’s March, talented women from the most marginalized communities finally started to get their share of the spotlight. Women like Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez have stormed into the political arena, and women like DeJuana Thompson from Alabama have organized to build collective power in their communities. Women have exerted their strength to mobilize for change on intersectional issues like ending family separation, defunding private prisons and protecting transgender rights. It’s been amazing and truly inspiring to see this movement sweep the nation.

2. What is at the heart of the mission of the Women’s Marches?

The heart of our mission is embedded in the Unity Principles, which was drafted by over 30 women of different backgrounds ahead of the 2017 march. People kept asking, “what are you marching for?” Those Unity Principles stated, “We believe that Women’s Rights are Human Rights and Human Rights are Women’s Rights… We must create a society in which all women—including Black women, Indigenous women, poor women, immigrant women, disabled women, Jewish women, Muslim women, Latinx women, Asian and Pacific Islander women, lesbian, bi, queer and trans women—are free and able to care for and nurture themselves and their families, however they are formed, in safe and healthy environments free from structural impediments.”

From the beginning, the Women’s March has been for all people who want to make a difference and cultivate leadership, because there is an entry point for everyone to get involved. I think in doing so, we created a blueprint off of which women and girls can and have been building.

3. What continues to inspire you and your work?

I am constantly inspired by our elders and the movements that they built, whether it’s the Civil Rights Movement, the Chicano Movement, the United Farmworkers’ Movement, the Black and Chicana Feminist movements of the 70s, 80s and 90s, Act Up and the movement for LGBTQIA+ rights, or the indigenous people’s movement. There’s so many examples throughout history of the bravery of everyday people who decided to speak up against unjust systems and organize, organize, organize. I take a lot of inspiration from my mentor, Harry Belafonte, who has always shown me that true leadership means being of service and making space for those with less power to be seen and heard. As we gain access to decision-making tables and spheres of influence, we have a responsibility to use my power to bring others into the room with us who are being directly impacted by a problem yet left out of the conversation. And I’m inspired every day by our young people, who are not just our future, they are our present. I feel a strong responsibility to our young people, to cultivate them and serve as a bridge between them and our elders.

4. What’s been the most difficult thing you’ve encountered?

The most difficult time in my life was when my sister, Patricia, was killed when I was a teenager. She and I were very close growing up almost like twins even though we were two years and one day apart. Patricia was buried on my 17th birthday and I was devastated. It was a very dark time for me and looking back I could have ended up going down a self-destructive path had it not been for my family and my basketball coach and the outlet that playing with the team provided. I learned about true compassion from my father, who refused to press charges against the person responsible for Patricia’s death. I was angry and I wanted revenge, but my father said he wouldn’t take another mother’s child away. That was my first true exposure to restorative justice because he understood that repairing the harm was not going to be achieved through any courtroom.

That motivated me to dedicate my life to being a better person, like my father, and that gave me a sense of purpose and direction at a time in my life when I was struggling with loss and grief. Over time, Patricia’s death became the catalyst for me wanting to go out and change the world. I went away to college and began working with youth that were impacted by incarceration and the juvenile justice system.

5. What made this Women’s March different than the previous marches?

Every single Women’s March has been different. In 2017, we were committed to the Unity Principles and to protecting each other from the attacks of this Presidential administration. For the second March, we went to the front lines and mobilized in Nevada, which was formerly a red state but had flipped to become the first state ever to elect a majority-women legislature. Then in our third year, we released the Women’s Agenda and set the course for women’s political advocacy in 2019. Three years have passed and our movement has been changing what people thought was possible for women to achieve through collective action.

This year, more than ever, we need to mobilize our intersectional movement. There are only ten months to go until our country votes for its next president. We don’t know yet if we will be voting to elect our first female head of state, but that possibility is still in the cards.

In addition to the Women’s March, Perez continues her mission as the Executive Director of The Gathering for Justice.

This Q&A was featured in the January 19th edition of The Sunday Paper. The Sunday Paper inspires hearts and minds to rise above the noise. To get The Sunday Paper delivered to your inbox each Sunday morning for free, click here to subscribe.