Sunday, January 22, 2017

Sometimes We March

LUCY BURDETTE: Always, always, we are thinking of writing and books and food and friends and family--including you, our beloved readers. But sometimes we have to take a day off to express our feelings about democracy and our hopes for our country. And so we march. 

We march for our daughters and our granddaughters and our mothers and our sisters at heart--and our brothers and fathers and husbands, too. We march for our earth, our wild places and animals. We march for those who don't look like us but are part of our one human family. We march because our diversity is one of our country's greatest strengths. We march because we are ever hopeful that love will always trump hate. 

From Julia in Maine...




Hallie reporting from the Boston common...


Susan Hubbard in New York City...


Jenn McKinlay in Phoenix...






Lucy Burdette in Key West...







Ingrid in Seattle...





Lucy's niece in LA (crowd of 200,000)...


Hallie's daughters in DC...


...where you could also find Julia's husband Ross and The Smithie.


Lucy's sister Susan Cerulean with her husband Dr. Jeff Chanton in Tallahassee...

PS. We marched for all of you! xoxox The Jungle Red Writers and friends

And a few late entries from our friends...

Edith Maxwell in Boston...



Dana Cameron in DC...


Sandy and Sandy in DC...



Maribeth in Hartford...



50 comments:

  1. Thanks for sharing all the terrific pictures, Lucy. How wonderful to see so many participating . . . .
    Love the “We ALL Make America Great!” sign and I’m cheering the “Make America Kind Again” sign because kindness truly does matter . . . .

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  2. I am so proud and so grateful to all those who marched in D.C. and other cities. I've loved looking at the pictures on FB and now the ones here. I didn't march, as I traveled to see a new member of our family today, my nephew's baby girl. For this new baby girl and my granddaughters and my daughter and myself, I thank you all from the bottom of my heart! I didn't get home until around 8:30 this evening, so I'm still catching up with all the news about the marches. However, I've read that the numbers were way beyond expectations in every city. Chicago couldn't even do a march because of the overwhelming numbers, and D.C. had more people at the march today than were at the inauguration yesterday. I look forward to reading stories from all of you who marched. Next time, I am going to move heaven and Earth to get to go, too.

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  3. The marches were awesome! So many women--so many of them friends, or women I don't know but deeply admire. I was not out marching, but I was with you in spirit. Thank you for marching for me.

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  4. Yes, I think we could use a bumper sticker for everyone with the slogan MAKE AMERICA KIND AGAIN!

    Kathy, congrats on the new family member!

    Gigi, we felt you with us:)

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  5. I've been looking at the photos of all those people willing to turn out and march against hate and bigotry. I've been looking at all the Oxfam graphics, showing that just 8 men control as much of the wealth of the world as the poorest half of the world's population. And I'm thinking--what kind of world can we make, on our own--because there will not be any effort to help coming from the highest office in this land--in which we help one another to achieve our dreams of enough food on the table, a secure roof over our head, meaningful work, an education for our children, and the right to live with whomever, practice whatever religion or none, as our hearts lead us?

    A grassroots effort to reshape our world. Kindness is a start.

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  6. Love trumps (lower case t) hate every time. Thanks, Reds. This was awesome.

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  7. The Boston march (not so odd I never saw Hallie among the 175000 of our closest comrades...) was so positive and inclusive I couldn't stop smiling!

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  8. Fabulous! Reporters can't march, but I have a different job to do :-) It has never been any more important time to be a good reporter.

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  9. What an incredible "high"! Now to translate it into action, pick your own battles, what matters to you. Supporting the continued funding of the National Endowment for the Arts and public broadcasting is high on my list. On my long list...

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  10. Ann in Rochester, another nasty womanJanuary 22, 2017 at 10:02 AM

    Thanks to each of you who marched with the millions yesterday. I see that it was the biggest protest march in our history. AND peaceful. My heart was full.

    Now the cretin can blame it all on the press. Good for you Ankh. xox

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  11. It's been a while since I posted a comment here, but have to today. What a THRILL to see this support and drive and desire to come together and make change together. It's time to translate peaceful protest into action...and keep that action moving forward. In the end, we are one planet and one people and I'm inspired to think that this new 'realm', for lack of a better word, was what many of us needed to realize we can't take our Constitutional rights for granted. Better change WILL come.

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  12. Thank you all! Bumper stickers and buttons stating "Make America Kind Again!"

    Deb Romano

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  13. Im so proud of all of you and was so excited to see the huge turnouts everywhere.
    I would have loved to have gone to DC but John's health issues made that impossible. I was going to join the local March in San Rafael but we've had storms all week and it was raining and blowing and I thought my presence was less necessary in a county like Marin where everybody agrees with all the issues at stake anyway!

    And I will pick my battles! My local chapter of AAUW is very active politically

    Rhys

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  14. I had family and friends marching in DC and Seneca Falls, NY and am so proud of all of them. The turnout was spectacular. Nest time, I go and my sister stays home to take care of Mom!

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  15. Thank you all for sharing. Someone else wrote that this is Day One. Yes.

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  16. I know you write this blog to sell your books. Now do you realize you have just misunderstood half your audience. It is fine to be kind....indeed it is necessary, but what on earth was this march really for?

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  17. I was so proud to march with you yesterday, Lucy!

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  18. I am so proud of all of my friends who marched yesterday. They marched for kindness, for civility, for inclusiveness, for equal rights, not just for women, but for everyone, and for respect for women and for all our fellow Americans. And they marched in the belief that America is ALREADY great. Its people make it so.

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  19. Thank you for the pix from all over. I couldn't make it in person to the march, but was there in spirit. Bravo for this posting and to all those who were there. As mystery writers, we have to understand those deep, dark human emotions so many harbor these days. It does not mean we need to agree with them, though.

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  20. I couldn't do the whole march because I had a book tour event, but my hubby met me afterwards, and we marched part of the route together. I got quite teary as Americans of all sorts walked together, peacefully, exuding good will.

    I marched to proclaim my values; and I'm so grateful that our Constitution protects my right to do so. I marched because I want all Americans to feel safe; I want all American families to have the same opportunities; I want the rest of the world to know that America's commitment to equality and freedom are still intact. What a great day!

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  21. Freedom of expression. Equality. Compassion. Freedom. Good will. All are welcome here! And we want to hear from everyone.

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  22. Interesting none of you marched for these things when BHO was president.

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  23. We had an awesome march day in San Francisco, though it was rainy! (However, if people in Alaska were willing to march in -15 degree weather, how could rain stop us?!)

    I saw so many great signs. My favorite was "What Meryl Said!"

    I marched with my twin sister and an 80-year old friend who said she wanted to march in order "to be counted!" Go girl! It's never too late to stand up for what you believe in.

    I am still high off the adrenaline and plan to get to work tomorrow to continue the fight. We cannot rest.

    -K

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  24. To anonymous above who asks why we didn't march for these things when BHO was President:

    There was no need to protest then because President Obama stands for all the things we were protesting FOR yesterday. But I bet you know this already.

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  25. What I know and can prove is that partisanship is abroad masquerading as sanctimoniousness.

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  26. Different people at the march were there for different personal reasons.

    What did I march for? K: I agree with 80-year-old your friend. To be counted. To say I think the country is going in the wrong direction. To stand up for what I believe in: equal rights, human rights, reproductive rights, free press, excellent public education, income equality, climate science, science science, human decency and respect... that just scratches the surface.

    Even mystery writers have personal beliefs. Most of the time we're out there, flogging our books, trying not to disappoint or offend... This seemed like a time to take advantage of the slightly public platform that having written what people like to read gives us, and stand up for what we think.

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  27. We had a terrific march in Toronto. I am so pumped that so many thousands of us could stand up with our sisters in America and let you know we're all concerned about all of us.

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  28. Fantastic!! I marched with about three thousand in Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada. In solidarity. In sisterhood. In hope. #strongertogether

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  29. How interesting that Anonymous is anonymous.

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  30. Ann in Rochester, well said.

    Under President Barack Obama the important qualities of kindness, compassion, equality (for pay, for women and all minorities), common sense, fair play, uncensored press, for respecting our fellow human beings, dignity in the face of criticism and personal attacks--all of this and much more that made me proud to be an American were extant under our 44th President. Now, we have a President who is the polar opposite to these qualities. We have to stand for ourselves and those who are unable to stand for themselves in this new disorder of tyranny.

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  31. After getting on a bus for DC at midnight on Friday, arriving in DC Saturday (after two bus breakdowns, being held up for 40 + minutes behind a bad accident) and changing to a new bus, we arrived in DC a little later than planned, but in high spirits. The bus left DC Sat. at 7, arrived back in Boone at 3 a.m.

    For those asking WHY we marched?

    For me, it was more things than I feel comfortable saying here in a comment, but basically it was for human rights. I'm sorry you don't get that. And if you think ANY of the Reds would give up their right to peaceful protest for sales, I'd have to say you don't know the Reds well, at all.

    Yes, I'm the mouthy one in the crowd.

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  32. I was recently trashed on Amazon for having two lesbian characters in my book for no other reason, according to this reviewer than to be PC. What this reader didn't know is that my dear uncle, one of my most favorite people, was gay and he killed himself a few years before because he was just so tired of fighting - fighting to be allowed to be married to his partner of thirty years and so many other rights the rest of us take for granted. To put it simply, I marched for him and for everyone else who is too tired to fight on their own anymore. If a reader chooses to quit on me because my personal tragedies have shaped me, that is absolutely okay. I understand completely and offer you nothing but love and respect for following your own heart and ask for nothing but the same in return.

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  33. I marched yesterday in San Jose for my sons and nieces, who are just beginning their adulthood and may lose the right to marry who they love and control over their own body. I marched because I believe that our political leaders should have compassion and respect for the citizens they are representing. I also can't believe that I still have to defend being a feminist after 40 years.

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  34. Brava, Reds! I'm so proud of all of us.

    In the early part of the last century our foremothers marched for suffrage, and eventually we got the vote. In the middle of the century, they (and some of us) marched for civil rights, and we were able to change the course of the history of this country with rights for those who previously had no say. In the 1960's and beyond marches for legal abortion helped save countless women from dying from illegal, back alley abortions, and helped millions of women choose their own destinies and the fate of their own bodies. The demonstrations against the war in Vietnam helped urge our government to stop that war.

    We stand on broad shoulders, the shoulders of all the women who came before us, who helped us realize our own better wages, higher education, broader career opportunities, marital equality, and so many other strides made over the last century. The very least I can do now is march, is to stand up and lend my loudest voice to the cause of equality, and to provide broad shoulders for the next generation of women, and of all people, to stand upon.

    To that end I marched yesterday here in Cincinnati, with a smiling, peaceful crowd of women, but also more than a third of the crowd was men. I was never more proud of humanity than I was yesterday, standing up for human rights for everyone. It was an incredible experience. Then coming home to find photos and testimonials of people who had taken part in demonstrations, rallies and marches all over the world, millions and millions of people in solidarity. The single largest march in history, lasting for thirty hours with the sun's travel around the globe. And not a single violent act associated with any of them. My friends, that is an awakening of spirit.

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  35. Jenn, yesterday as we approached the park where the rally was being held, we started to pass a group of elderly black women sitting on some steps. They were thanking us for marching. I was incredibly touched by this.

    And I was equally touched by the bravery of the young woman whose sign read "My life was saved by a late-term abortion". Now that took courage. She was not anonymous, but right out there holding her sign.

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  36. Thank Jungle Red folks, for sharing thoughts, experiences, and pictures of yesterday's amazing grace. I want to mention that women from all around the world — London, Oslo, Brazil, India, Africa (there's a slide show on the N Y Times website with 30 pictures) — also supported the march with demonstrations of their own..

    One tidbit from the press: Trump asked the military to provide tanks and other war machines for the inaugural parade. The military refused, citing that the roads can't accommodate these vehicles. It's hard to believe that Trump wants the USA to use the same tactics as Russia and North Korea. I hope that the president and his minions bump up against reality checks often as they try to destroy rather than build.

    There are many reasons for hope. I believe in yesterday as the beginning of a greater movement. Never, never, never give up.

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  37. I have voted in every election since Carter/Ford. Sometimes my candidate wins; sometimes he loses, and I'm disappointed because I don't agree with the views of the winner. However, I've never before been fearful after an election. I marched yesterday to remind the powers that be that there are a huge number of people around the country and around the world who don't agree with the agenda of this administration. As Americans, we have a right to protest peacefully--that is democracy in action. Protests helped women get the vote, helped win civil rights legislation, and helped end the war in Vietnam. Protests don't produce results instantaneously, but they are heard.
    As a mystery author, I am primarily an entertainer--I know that. But I try in my work to introduce my readers to all kinds of characters they might not have an opportunity to meet in real life, and to consider the nuances of those characters' situations. I've written about mentally ill people who refuse help, and young women struggling with an unplanned pregnancy, and a young black man fearful of the police, and rural white men unable to find enough work to allow them to live in the community they love. Recently, a reader gave one of my books a one-star review and called me a "libtard" because I portrayed an undocumented worker sympathetically. Well, that was her prerogative, but I'll tell you this--I'll never water down my writing so I don't offend anyone just to make a few more sales.

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  38. Proud to know you all, Reds' family!

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  39. congratulations to all of us who marched, who stood up to be counted, and who believe that America can be kind again to EVERYONE! Thank you for publishing these comments and pics!

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  40. Hugs and respect to my sisters. I did not march, breathing issues, but my great-niece and her family marched here in St. Louis, and a former student went to D.C. -- and credited me with inspiring a budding feminist. My Shakespeare class asked for a definition, confirmed my "equal pay, equal rights" definition and spontaneously and unanimously voted that they all were feminists . . . if I did nothing else in 26 years of teaching, that would be enough. <3

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  41. Love you,Reds! I marched with a wonderful crowd in Sacramento. So inspiring ��

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  42. Thank you all -- I just arrived home from a one week vacation -- but I spent most of yesterday following friends and family on social media. My sister in LA, a daughter in Manhattan, a daughter with her son in Boston, and a daughter with two of her daughters in Hartford. Loved the marches so much -- especially the small towns and places around the globe.

    I do hope that action follows marching -- our children and grandchildren need us

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  43. Thank you all!!! Thank you for being there when we could not.

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  44. Love love love love the photos, especially the one with the police wearing pink hats :-) Love all of the photos! Thank you for sharing.

    Bravo to everyone who participated in Women's March. A friend invited me to go and I planned to go. Sad to say I missed because I came down with this awful 24 hour flu bug!

    Diana

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  45. I paricipated in a
    local march and am so thrilled to see the writers I love share my beliefs. My sign said 'we stand for love and compassion' and I'm really feeling that here. Thank you!

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  46. Jenn,

    You have my condolences. I cried when you mentioned that your favorite uncle died because of who he was. I think it was mean-spitited of one reviewer to give you a one star review because of the characters. Can I ask which book? I just discovered your books at the library.

    On a slightly different topic, I saw an Emma Thompson-Will Ferrell movie called Stranger Than Fiction and it resonated with me because I had read a teen novel with a character so eerily similar to me that it freaked me out! And that character was killed off. I was sixteen when I read that novel and I got so mad that I stopped reading that series. It never occurred to me to trash the book in a book review.

    As an adult, I am more careful about giving reviews on Goodreads. I read that one of my favorite authors was upset about a bad review and there was a blog about this. Other authors and readers mentioned not giving less than 3 star reviews. Since I read that blog, I decided that if I do not like a book for whatever reason, I do not write a review at all. Often, it is because the story is hard for me to follow.

    However, I write reviews or give 3 or 4 or 5 stars to books that I enjoyed reading.

    Thank you for sharing.

    Diana

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  47. Diana - Okay, that would freak me out! I did love that movie, however. The was my latest Library Lover's Mystery - BETTER LATE THAN NEVER. The character Paula develops a relationship with another character Hannah. What killed me was that she accused me of including these people out of some sense of political correctness, not knowing about my past, obviously, but also not knowing that one of them becomes a suspect in this year's DEATH IN THE STACKS. I am glad she has quit on me and will be spared the agony of reading about them. Oy! I, too, am very careful in what i say about other people's books. Writing is hard - I may not like someone's book, but I always respect the effort they put into it.

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