Historically, marches have been critical catalysts for mobilizing mass movements of people on behalf of peace, justice, equality and political reform. Coincidentally perhaps, the great marches of the last century started in the month of March.
- On March 3, 1913, the 5000-strong Women’s Suffrage March in Washington, DC was a turning point in efforts to gain women the right to vote.
- On March 12, 1930, the 240-mile Salt March led by Mahatma Gandhi was a
significant milestone in India’s struggle for independence, leading to the Round
Table Conference in London later that year.
- On March 25, 1965, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. led the five-day march for voting
rights from Selma to Montgomery. The march was a critical step in the civil-
rights struggle culminating in the Voting Rights Act later that year.
- On March 1, 1986, the Great Peace March helped mobilize public support for key
peace initiatives, including a ban on nuclear testing in 1992 and the American-Soviet Peace Walks.
Also, the march is bringing together and reinvigorating the environmental and climate community of activists. Many see what we have to do as impossible. Many people see the march itself as impossible. The March itself is a metaphor for people coming together in unison, and standing as a community to do what is needed. The March aspires to have specific results too, such as the rejection of the Keystone pipeline, the training of environmental activists, the networking of activists and more. Also, the marchers themselves are constantly formulating additional demands as the progress.
On July 21, 2013, the Walk for our Grandchildren walked from Camp David to the White House to call upon President Obama to take climate action now for the sake of grandchildren, grandparents, and every age in between.