The Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom hosted the third annual Women’s March in downtown Greeley.
The event was co-hosted by several organizations including the Unitarian Church of Greeley and Greeley Indivisible. The 2020 march celebrated the 100th anniversary of women’s right to vote. The marchers stepped off at the Weld County Court House raising their signs high and chanting their way through the streets.
The last stop of the march was the Lincoln Park gazebo. Signs and speakers addressed several issues including women’s rights, climate change and the 2020 presidential election. Many female activists and leaders took the stage to speak about current issues, endorse their campaigns and demand a change in our country.
One of those speakers, House District 48 candidate Holly A. Herson, decided to run for office after her father committed suicide. She said mental health and suicide prevention are two major issues she is focusing on. Herson brought up how important equality and diversity are in our society.
“The only path for tolerance, acceptance and celebration is to see and embrace our differences,” Herson said. “That is what makes a human race so amazing. We’re here to acknowledge and appreciate our diversity in order to find the equity and equality that we need.”
Sally Boccella, another local candidate running for District 23 in the state Senate, said she participated in the Greeley Women’s March for her family members and for the people who fight in the women’s rights movement. She discussed how important voting is and encouraged people to register.
“You have the power to influence policy,” Boccella said. “Register to vote, it is your voice. Don’t empower someone else to take that away from you.”
State Rep. Mary Young, who spoke at the march, said she ran for office to represent all people. She talked about how passionate she is about issues involving women and their families, which led into the discussion of women’s rights over the past 100 years.
“When I was a young woman…they talked about, ‘You’ve come a long way, baby,’” Young said. “We are not babies, we are women. And we’ve come a long way, but we have much farther to go.”
Bob Stack, the leader of a resistance group called the Courthouse Steps, came to the march to encourage people to join in on activism. The group meets on the first Saturday of every month at the Weld County Court House steps to host speakers and march.
As the Greeley Women’s March came to an end, people had the opportunity to register to vote. To learn more about the annual march and The Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, visit https://www.wilpf.org. Visit here for more information on registering to vote https://www.sos.state.co.us/pubs/elections/vote/VoterHomeMobile.htm.
