Women’s March activists gathered in Las Vegas on Sunday to celebrate the one-year anniversary of the largest single-day protest in U.S. history and to launch a nationwide political action tour.
“Power to the Polls” kicked off at 10 a.m. local time in Sam Boyd Stadium, about 10 miles east of the Las Vegas Strip. Over 4,000 people planned to attend the event, according to its Facebook page. The line-up of speakers included Cher, civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), and Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards.
“The Women’s March fueled a feminist revolution,” Richards said. “White women, listen up. We’ve got to do better. ... It is not up to women of color to save this country from itself. That’s on all of us.”
“Last year, we dared to hope for a better, brighter, more inclusive world,” she continued. “And this year, we’re going to go out and build it.”
Event organizers chose to host “Power to the Polls” in Nevada for several reasons, including its high-profile Senate race ― incumbent Dean Heller is rated by many analysts as the most vulnerable Republican senator seeking re-election this year. A couple of the state’s House races also are expected to be competitive.
“Power to the Polls” followed hundreds of sister marches on Saturday, which brought thousands of protesters to cities nationwide, including New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. Demonstrations continued on Sunday in several U.S. cities and over a dozen other countries.
After this weekend’s anniversary events, the Women’s March founders will begin a national tour of 10 battleground states to encourage Americans to take political action. They’ll partner with local progressive groups to host town halls, candidate trainings, rallies and voter registration events ahead of the 2018 midterm elections.
“The national voter registration tour will target swing states to register new voters, engage impacted communities, harness our collective energy to advocate for policies and candidates that reflect our values, and collaborate with our partners to elect more women and progressives candidates to office,” according to the event’s website.
Organizers and participants shared photos and videos from the event on Twitter:
This story has been updated with comments from Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards. Please check back for further updates.