Thousands of people on Saturday gathered in downtown Raleigh for the Women's March to express concern about the future of women's rights under President Donald Trump's administration.
Health care, the environment, women's rights and love are matters these marchers fear could be trampled by a Trump presidency.
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Members of the crowd, bearing homemade signs, flooded Fayetteville Street to voice their opinions just one day after Trump's inauguration.
I'm not comfortable as a woman or citizen, so i want my voice to be heard and i want to stand with other women," protester Valerie Scott said.
Organizers estimated 17,000 people turned out for the event. A spokesman for the Raleigh Police Department said the department does not give estimates of crowd sizes because it's difficult to be accurate.
"I'm concerned that women are going to be treated differently because they're a woman, and they think we can't do what men can do," protester Nila Hines said.
"I've never been so depressed after an election as I was this year. many days I stayed curled up in my bed, and I said 'You know what, I just got to get out and speak," protester Sandra Sanchez said.
Raleigh protesters were part of the millions of other people who protested around the United States and the world Saturday.
Cities around the world, such as Sydney, Paris and Copenhagen, joined Raleigh, Charlotte and Washington, D.C., in similar marches. Dozens of other cities in the United States, including Denver, San Francisco and Seattle, held marches, as well. Raleigh's Women's March was one of several marches in cities across the state, including Charlotte, Greensboro, Asheville and Wilmington.
"I've never been so depressed after an election as I was this year. many days I stayed curled up in my bed, and I said 'You know what, I just got to get out and speak," protester Sandra Sanchez said.
Women's March in Raleigh chants to get rid of HB2. #WomenMobilizeNCpic.twitter.com/5eLs2ZSBgW
— Nathania Johnson (@nlj)
January 21, 2017Proud to join the thousands in the Women's March on Raleigh. pic.twitter.com/y0sykiRVoP
— Larry Clubine (@LarryClubine)
January 21, 2017