LANSING - Somewhere between 8,000 and 9,000 people gathered on the lawn of the Michigan State Capitol today in solidarity with hundreds of rallies around the nation and the Women's March on Washington, D.C.
Among the capitol steps speakers was Gretchen Whitmer, Democratic candidate for Michigan governor. Whitmer echoed the words of former First Lady Michelle Obama, telling those gathered to "go high".
Val Schnabel traveled from Oxford, Michigan for the Lansing rally. "We don't like what we hear about the new administration coming in, the rights they're going to take away...not only from women. People who are of different faiths. We just don't really feel it's right" said Schnabel. "We want to protect the Constitution."
Val's husband John Schnabel added, "This is just a first step. I know there's a lot of talk about the next steps, but at least this is a step...that we're not going to wait two years to vote for people. we want to maintain our rights for the next years until we can vote for the right people to support them."
Some attendance estimates for the Women's March on Washington D.C. reach 500,000.
