Sheela McLean, left, Callie Fink and Terry Karro are among the Methow Valley women who will travel to the Women’s March on Washington, D.C., on Jan. 21.
Events in valley, state also lead many to act
By Ann McCreary
Motivated by fear and anger, a desire to take action, and above all a need to be heard, scores of women from the Methow Valley will join in marches on Jan. 21 — the day after the presidential inauguration — here at home and as far away as Washington, D.C.
Organized in response to the national elections in November, the Women’s March on Washington, D.C., is described as a national show of support for women’s rights and human rights. Several Methow Valley women will be among the 200,000 people expected to attend.
An estimated 40 to 50 women were planning to travel to Seattle for a “sister march,” described as a show of solidarity for human rights, equity and social justice in the nation.
Organizing for the Women’s March on Washington, D.C., began within hours of the November elections, and sister marches will be held around the country and the world on the day after the presidential inauguration.
The national march is intended to “send a bold message to our new administration on their first day in office, and to the world that women’s rights are human rights,” according to the organization’s website.
Several valley women are making the trip across the country to join in the Women’s March on Washington. For some it is their first involvement in political activism, while others have been politically active throughout their lives.
“I have never marched for a cause,” said Winthrop resident Sheela McLean. “But I don’t like what I’ve seen the past few months. I’m a woman, and we’re half the nation.”
McLean will fly to Washington with Callie Fink and Terry Karro, both of Winthrop, to march on Jan. 21. Karro said the last time she marched was in support of the Equal Rights Amendment some 30 years ago.
“After the election … I felt like I had to do something,” Karro said. “We are saying that we care, that we’ll be watching.”
Moment in history
Natalie Kuehler booked a ticket to Washington D.C. the day after the Nov. 8 election, even before she was aware of plans for a march.
“It was clear at the time there was going to be something. And I really wanted to go. I wanted to be present for this moment in history,” said Kuehler, who lives in Winthrop.
Kuehler said she was disturbed by changes she observed in American politics during the 2016 presidential election. Kuehler brings an unusual perspective to her observations.
Born in Germany, she attended college and law school in the United States and has worked for a Wall Street law firm and the U.S. Department of Justice.
“I have dual citizenship. I came here because I’ve chosen this country actively. I love the United States,” said Kuehler.
“One of the things I found inspiring about American politics was the integrity that elected officials brought to the public arena, and I felt that was integral to democracy functioning well,” she said.
During the past election, however, “I felt there was a change in political discourse … it did not feel respectful, it did not feel that a lot of integrity was involved,” Kuehler said.
“We’ve seen over history, and it’s close to my heart, that change can happen very rapidly and in unpredictable ways. If you start normalizing disrespect and dishonesty, pretty soon you lose that line,” Kuehler said.
“I felt a sense of urgency … to not disengage and allow politics to happen but to demand a higher level of respect and dignity from our elected officials, and also from ourselves as a society,” she said.
“Going to the march for me is a way of being present for this moment in history,” said Kuehler. “I want to be accounted for. I don’t want to look back 20 years from now and feel I just let something happen.”
Standing for women’s rights
Like Kuehler, Katie Haven felt a strong need to take action after the election.
Haven, who lives on McFarland Creek, saw a Facebook posting about the Washington, D.C., march shortly after the election and signed on right away. She will travel by train across the country with her 83-year-old mother — “a veteran” of political demonstrations — who will march with her.
Haven said she is motivated by a desire to protect women’s rights. “The women’s movement … is far enough in the past that a whole generation of women take for granted all the things they have,” she said.
“Those rights are going to yanked away from them if they don’t stand up and fight for them,” Haven said.
The marchers will send a message to the incoming administration, Haven said. “We’re not going to sit down and shut up and let you walk all over us,” she said.
“The silver lining in all this is it has spurred people to get politically active. It will be noticed,” Haven said.
Patsy Pattison, who lives near Winthrop, is among the women spurred into political activism for the first time.
“I’ve never been very politically active,” said Pattison, who is traveling to Washington with friends from Seattle for the march. “I’m 64 years old. This may be a turning point for me.”
Pattison said she began making arrangements to go to the march as soon as she learned of it.
“I’m hoping this will make me feel less helpless. I’m excited to get there and feel the energy,” Pattison said.
“It’s just a start for me. I’m hoping there are things we can do going forward that I’ll learn about after participating in this.”
Maria Converse of Winthrop is going to the Washington, D.C., march with her two grown daughters and her sister.
“We want to make sure our voices were heard and we had some representation, not just for women’s issues. My daughters, who are in their mid-30s, jumped on board right away,” she said.
“It was our Christmas present to each other. We decided not to give presents, and do this for each other,” Converse said.
Seattle march
Local women who plan to attend the Women’s March in Seattle are organizing carpools and arranging accommodations.
Cameron Green of Carlton has been working with other local women to plan ride sharing, and as of early January she was aware of at least 45 women who were planning to go to Seattle.
“My personal hope is that we can get upwards of 100 women from the Methow Valley to march together as the Methow Block,” Green said.
The Seattle march is planned to be a silent march for most of the way, modeled after the civil rights marches of the 1960s and ’70s.
Green and other local woman have organized a session to make posters and banners for the march on Friday (Jan. 13), from 4 to 7 p.m., at the Education Station in TwispWorks. Some supplies will be provided but people are encouraged to bring their own materials. For information contact Green at cameroncatering@yahoo.com.
The Seattle march offers an opportunity to show support for “groups that have been threatened by the incoming administration … whether you are talking about Muslims, African-Americans, Native Americans, women or LGBT people,” Green said.
“My motivation, and for a lot of the women going, is to stand up and recognize that we’re not going to let these things happen to our neighbors or our environment,” Green said.
“My personal passion is to protect our ecosystems and environment … for future generations. We would be remiss to allow the rollbacks that are being proposed in terms of clean air and clean water,” she said.
“The national movement is to stand up and say, ‘We’re watching and we’re visioning something better. And together we have power,’” Green said.
She hopes that local women attending marches in Washington, D.C., Seattle or elsewhere will bring positive energy for change back to the Methow Valley.
“We are pretty sheltered here in the Methow. How do we take action that people are mobilizing around the country and bring it back to our community? My hope and belief is that we can find common ground,” Green said.
March in the Methow
Local women are also planning an event here in the valley, called March in the Methow on Jan. 21.
“Everyone is welcome to join us as we march peacefully for women’s rights, human rights, civil rights and social justice,” said Jane Hill of Twisp, part of an eight-member organizing committee.
Marchers will convene in the gym of the Methow Valley Community Center at 9:45 a.m. to observe a minute of silence in conjunction with a program called 1@1 (one minute at 1 p.m. Eastern time). Groups all over the country will rise at the same time (10 a.m. here) in support of women’s rights, Hill said.
Women and supporters will march through Twisp behind a banner reading “Love, not hate, makes America great,” Hill said. The march will return to the Community Center where there will be a rally and brief program and light refreshments. Monica Pettelle and Nadine van Hees will provide music.
For more information, contact Hill at 997-0153.
Marches are being organized around Washington state, including marches in Chelan and Wenatchee. Other locations include Anacortes, Bellingham, Eastsound, Ephrata, Friday Harbor, Olympia, Spokane, Whidbey Island and Yakima, according to the national march website.
Nearly 300 sister marches were planned to take place on Jan. 21 as of this week, according to the national website. All 50 states and Puerto Rico are confirmed to have at least one march on that day, as well as 55 cities on six continents around the world, including Tokyo, Sydney, Nairobi, Paris and Bogotá.
While led by women, all people are welcome to attend the marches, according to the national website. More than 300,000 people have signed up on Facebook to attend a local march, in addition to approximately 200,000 who have said they will attend the march in Washington, D.C.
