Democrat Women’s SOTU Protest Pic Clearly Shows the Power of Solidarity

With President Trump’s first year in office done and dusted, pundits on both ends of the political spectrum will undoubtedly be arguing for days about his first State of the Union speech and its rebuttal by Democrat rising star Joe Kennedy III.

Regardless of your political leanings, one thing is for certain: seeing the many members the Democratic party wearing all black in solidarity with the Time’s Up and #MeToo movements is a powerful reminder of how solidarity can be one of the most powerful weapons anyone has.

Although the call initially went out to women in the party to wear all black in solidarity, men showed up in full force, too, with many women members of the Democratic caucus also donning large red pins emblazoned with the name Recy, in honor of Recy Taylor, the woman Oprah Winfrey so eloquently spoke about during her jaw-dropping Golden Globes speech at the beginning of January.

“We want to use the model of Recy Taylor to have courage,” said @RepLawrence at the #SOTUblackout. pic.twitter.com/dRV5n20kRB

— NowThis Newsroom (@newsroom) January 30, 2018

While fans of the GOP are applauding the president’s speech, many are taking 45 to task for failing to mention anything about the ongoing women’s empowerment movements spreading across the US. As Newsweek notes, the only time the word “woman” appeared in this year’s SOTU is during the portion of the president’s speech in which he trotted out the story of a police officer who adopted a baby from a drug-addicted woman he encountered while at work.

Outside of the house, while Trump gave his remarks, activists lit up the side of the Trump Hotel in DC with a phrase that read, “Donald Trump harassed or assaulted twenty women.” There has been no comment from the White House on the president’s lack of mentioning women’s rights or the accusation that appeared on the side of his hotel Tuesday.

Did you watch the SOTU? Tell us your thoughts @BritandCo!

(Photo via Alex Wong/Getty)