Scarlett Johannson, Katy Perry, Miley Cyrus, America Ferrera and a slew of other stars took to the streets on Saturday to join hundreds of thousands of people protesting in favour of women’s rights and equality a day after US President Donald Trump was sworn in.
Speaking onstage at the Women’s March on Washington, DC, Ferrera told the crowd, “We are gathered here and across the country and around the world today to say, ‘Mr. Trump, we refuse’. It’s been a heartbreaking time to be both a woman and an immigrant in this country. Our dignity, our character, our rights have all been under attack and a platform of hate and division assumed power yesterday. We march today for our families and our neighbours, for our future, for the causes that we claim and the causes that claim us. We march today for the moral core of this nation, against which our new president is waging a war.”
Johannson talked about the importance of women’s health, planned parenthood and access to reproductive services.
“President Trump, I did not vote for you,” she said. “That said, I respect that you are our president and I want to be able to support you but first I ask that you support me, support my sister, support my mother, support my daughter who may actually, as a result of the appointments you have made, grow up in a country that is moving backwards, not forward and who may potentially not have the right to make choices for her body and her future that your daughter Ivanka has been privileged to have. I ask you to support all women and our fight for equality in all things. I pledge my relentless devotion to women’s healthcare initiatives. I will not stop fighting to make basic women’s healthcare available to all.”
Other celebrities who spoke at the Women’s March on Washington included Madonna, feminist icon Gloria Steinem, Michael Moore, Alicia Keys, Janelle Monáe and Ashley Judd.
Debra Messing, Jessica Chastain, Emma Watson, Chrissy Teigen and Nick Offerman also attended.
Katy Perry announced on Instagram she would be marching with sister Angela Hudson.
“Marching with SO many sisters today but my heart is most proud to march with my blood sister, Angela, who has always been my guardian angel,” she wrote. “We should all be guardians for each other. I march today because I am not afraid anymore and I hope I can be an example of fearlessness and resilience. I will not let anyone suppress me, silence me or clip my wings.”
“For a long time I misunderstood the true definition of being a feminist, but now that I know, I am empowered!” she said. “I am indisputably a feminist. I am here today to break the cycle of suppression and inequality. I stand with you all!”
Women’s rights marches also took place in cities such as New York City, Los Angeles, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Las Vegas and Park City, Utah, where many celebs are in town for the 2017 Sundance Film Festival.
Cyrus marched in Los Angeles, where the subways were extraordinarily packed with participants rushing to get to the protest. Other celebrity attendees included Joseph Gordon-Levitt, pregnant Lauren Conrad and Willow Smith, E! News has learned. Holly Madison marched in Las Vegas.
In Park City, Charlize Theron and Maria Bello marched together alongside women holding pink signs supporting planned parenthood and women’s rights. Many of the participants across the country wore pink wool hats with kitty ears.
Mary Steenburgen, Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Jennifer Beals and Laura Dern also took part in the protest, as did Teigen’s husband, singer John Legend, and Benjamin Bratt. Solidarity rallies and marches were also held abroad. Outlander stars Caitriona Balfe marched in Scotland and her co-star Tobias Menzies took part in protest in Budapest.
Helen Mirren took part in the Women’s March in New York City, where she, ‘Sex & the City’ star Cynthia Nixon and Whoopi Goldberg all spoke onstage.
“I don’t want to go back. What’s at stake is everything you believe in,” the View co-host told the crowd. “This is magnificent, but this cannot end today.”
“This is amazing!” Mirren wrote on Instagram, alongside a selfie taken near a group of marchers. Rosie Perez, who left The View in 2015, and Yoko Ono also attended the march.
Westworld star Evan Rachel Wood posted videos showing her and her friends heading to the Women’s March on Washington. She wore a black T-shirt with the words “I’m Not Afraid of You Anymore” printed in white.