C ommon Sense Millard South High School • 14905 Q St. • Omaha, Neb., 68137
February 2, 2018
Volume 18 Issue 5
Women motivate women 2nd annual women’s march storms the streets of Omaha
Junior Abby Mcfarland holds up home made poster supporting the movement. Photos by Johnna Sisneros
Onlookers from the stadium club cheer marchers on-Photo by Johnna Sisneros
Johnna Sisneros Staff Reporter
A year ago after the inauguration of current president Donald Trump, millions of women all across the country descended upon the streets in cities all across the country to protest the 2016 election, because they felt that their say was ignored. In that moment of rage and vexation, it was difficult to tell whether or not this was simply a case of political frustration or the culmination of decades of oppression coming to a boil with the hope of change. Now with the second annual women’s march coming to completion this past Saturday, the answer is crystal clear. We are entering a new period in our country’s history mimicking that of the first protests for equality in the ‘50s and ‘60s. Women and other minorities are storming the castle of prejudice in a highly effective two pronged effort. The first being through systematic protest of the current political climate of ignorance and also by challenging the dogma of men’s power overall with influential movements like #metoo and #timesup.
The particular theme this year in Omaha was “women marching on the polls.” Participants were invited to register to vote before or after the march, and many people aspiring to run for some sort of political office were present and paving the way to change the system and inspire others to do the same. “With recent events, I realized that certain freedoms that I have been afforded, like having great public schools and having access to health insurance were things that I had taken for granted and that they were coming under attack, so I decided to try to do something about it,” says Jackie Collett, a candidate for state legislature who attended the 2018 women’s march in Omaha. She said that the event represents much more than just systemic resistance to the presidency, which seems to be a common misconception of a decent amount of the population. “It’s about waking people up,” Collett said. “People like me have it really well, and we need to get people to realize that many others don’t have all of those privileges and we need to not only be more compassionate but also work to making those privileges more attainable for everyone,” she said.
At about 1:45 just after the featured speaker, the countdown began, the marchers began walking, physically and metaphorically to the same goal of equality. Hundreds of people from all walks of life held up home made signs expressing discontent and dreams for a better tomorrow. As the group progressed down the streets of Omaha, you could not help but feel the unity among all participants. They were from different backgrounds, different nationalities, religions and cultures, but all believed in the same concept of the true American dream, the dream that every person is born equal in the eyes of the government and that each person is entitled to equal opportunity regardless of gender, political/religious belief or skin color. In the words of a 2nd generation immigrant named Monica who attended the March, “The goal of the movement is to be heard; it is to say that we are women and it’s time that those who have had power and have messed it up take a back seat and finally listen to what other people have to say.”
art by Sean Burton
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Business teacher promoted to Dean of 10th grade students for remainder of school year
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The struggle for sleep.
Page 8-9
Movie reviews and more
Page 10-11
Varsity boys basketball and Hoops for Hope