09-03-2025
Women's March Los Angeles: Protesters demand equal rights in DTLA as part of global movement
The Brief
Saturday, March 8, is International Women's Day. March is Women's History Month.
Demonstrators are marching in downtown Los Angeles from Pershing Square to LA City Hall.
Protesters say they're speaking out against a "war on women" and Project 2025.
LOS ANGELES - Thousands of women across the world are taking to the streets on Saturday during International Women's Day, to demand equal rights, speak out against violence against women, and more.
One of those protests took place in downtownLos Angeles on Saturday, with hundreds of demonstrators marching from Pershing Square to City Hall.
What we know
Protesters gathered near Pershing Square around 10 a.m., with a planned march several blocks to Los Angeles City Hall.
The protest was organized by the Womens March Foundation Los Angeles.
At City Hall, the protesters chanted and held their signs, calling for things like legal access to abortion, rights for transgender people and more.
Several counter-protesters were also at City Hall on Saturday, with signs saying things like "abortion is murder."
What they're saying
The demonstrators spoke out against gender inequality and policy that the group says goes against women's rights. On their website, the group specifically calls out President Donald Trump's administration and Project 2025.
"Since taking office, the Trump Administration has unleashed a war against women driven by the Project 2025 playbook, which is why, more than ever, we must continue to resist, persist, and demand change," the Womens March Foundation's website said.
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"This is our day to stand together, make our voices heard, and show the world that we are not backing down. Women's rights are under attack, but we refuse to go backward."
Pamela Baez was one of the demonstrators there on Saturday. She told FOX 11 that she was there to "support equality. Recently, in this political climate, a lot of us have been hopeless, or [are] getting very disillusioned with what's going on in the country."
"I think I mostly want people to be aware that women are people. They have rights," Baez said. "…We just want to show everybody that we care about them. People deserve healthcare. Women deserve rights. People don't choose to be born; they're just born into this world, and they deserve all the rights that every human deserves."
Los Angeles' day of protest was part of a much larger movement across the U.S. and the world. Womens March Network organized hundreds of demonstrations for this weekend in more than a dozen states.
The organization's website says the events are meant to "build and strengthen the relationships we'll need to face what's ahead."
Big picture view
Los Angeles' march on Saturday is just one part of a global movement. Protests and demonstrations went on across the globe this International Women's Day.
In Turkey, demonstrators in Istanbul marched, sang and spoke out against traditional gender and familial roles. In Poland, activists opened an abortion center across from Warsaw's parliament building.
Other demonstrations happened in Athens, Belgrade, Lagos, Madrid, Munich, Paris, St. Petersberg and more, with women and allies taking to the streets to demand equality.
The Source
Information in this story is from the Women's March Foundation website, the Associated Press, and the Women's March in downtown Los Angeles on March 8, 2025.
