If the Women’s March filled you with energy and hope, do all you can to keep up the momentum and bring about change. Get involved and stay involved. By channeling your energy into taking action, you’ll know that you’re actually doing something positive, rather than feeling helpless.
There are more marches planned, like the March4Women on March 5th, or join Action Aid at the global Million Women Rise protest on March 11. Support online petitions by signing and sharing them via social media to increase their visibility among your friends. And try to engage with those beyond your social media bubble and reach people who don’t already think like you. Make sure you aren’t only hearing the opinions of people who share your views so you get the full picture.
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Another way to stay involved is to become more informed about the issues. Right now, there are so many to tackle, whether globally or in the UK. Different organisations took part in the Women’s March for different reasons. It’s probably a case of choosing which battle you want to fight and finding out as much as you can, then finding a relevant community that will support you and plugging into their energy.
Help to raise funds for the causes that really matter to you, whether locally or abroad. For example, ActionAid are currently appealing for funds to support local women’s groups in Africa where three million girls are at risk of female genital mutilation every year. The groups we support are the frontline defenders of these girls, often putting themselves at risk to rescue girls.
Or you could try and help one life at a time, for example by choosing to sponsor a girl in a country like Bangladesh where thousands of girls living on the streets are at risk. Sponsoring can help them go to school and ensure they have a safe place to sleep. This is a really positive way you can make a change by impacting long-term on one life at a time.
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If you have a bit more time, you can campaign for local organisations and get involved at a grass roots level in practical ways. The creative actions of organisations like Bridges Not Walls make an impact on the people making policy decisions. Or you could look into supporting victims of domestic abuse or contributing to collections for refugees.
It really does feel right now that there is a groundswell of people trying to do something meaningful. So, if you feel helpless in the face of what’s going on become part of a community that feels the same way and do something.
As the global political situation continues to evolve we can all do our bit. And every bit matters.