More than 250 participants gathered in Corpus Christi’s Cole Park for the Woman’s March for Equality to express their solidarity and support local activism.

The event took place on International Woman’s Day, March 8, and was organized by local advocate Ellison Powers Rhea.  

Organizers counted 270 participants, including District 2 City Council Member Sylvia Campos.

Campos emphasized the importance of standing in solidarity with younger generations in the fight against equality by showing up and speaking out.

“You’re not alone, and you’re not crazy. There’s other’s that think just like we do,” said Campos on defending women’s right to bodily autonomy and fundamental rights.  

She hopes the younger women who attended the march walked away feeling empowered, thinking, “Maybe I can do what she’s doing.” Sylvia shared that growing up she saw a lack of representation in office which motivated her to run for city council and hopes to inspire younger women to step up and become leaders themselves.  

This year’s international Woman’s Day saw an increase in activism and solidarity, with more than 300 marches and events held across the nation, according to the Women’s March organization.

In an interview prior to the march, organizer Ellison Powers Rhea shared a powerful message,

“Gender should never under any circumstances, limit what you think someone is capable of,” said Rhea in an interview before the march. “Whether that’s a cisgender man treating a cisgender woman as less, or if that’s hatred or violence towards transgender people.” 

Identifying as transmasculine and a feminist, Rhea addressed questions they have received about hosting a woman’s march. “It isn’t just about my experience or my desire to promote femineity and feminism. It’s that I’m affected by gender equality issues too.”

Rhea emphasized that the fight for gender equality is a shared struggle for all, saying, “Even if I was born as a cis man, I think this is a fight for everyone. Men do absolutely have a stake in this, it’s to no one’s benefit to have this unequal situation that we have. Inequality hurts everybody, equality helps everybody.” 

Anyone interested in action and supporting progressive movements are encouraged to join the Costal Bend Progressive group at https://www.meetup.com/coastalbendprogressives/.