by Rachel Piazza

“Up from a past that is rooted in pain, I rise”

Alicia Keys spoke the words of Maya Angelou as a sea speckled with freshly knitted pink hats swelled through the streets surrounding the National Mall.

“Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,

I am the dream and the hope of the slave.

I rise.”

Each stanza churned the pink water like a strong gust of wind.

Electricity pulsed through cheers and chants.

In the moment that Keys declared that “These girls are on fiiiirrre,” a wave was born. Standing in the middle of this ocean, I bobbed up and down as the this powerful, yet peaceful current rolled through with a singular harmonic focus.

The feminist movement has long been characterized by waves. The Suffragist Movement to secure women’s right to vote is described as feminism’s first wave. The second wave, starting in the 60’s, ushered in unprecedented legal and cultural changes but failed to encompass the diversity of women. LGBTQIA women were alienated, as were women of color. As that wave settled, a third wave began to swell. This time, feminists began to address the issues of inclusivity and diversity that plagued the second wave. Incorporating the idea of intersecting oppressions, third wave feminists turned towards a more cerebral feminism that linked all oppressions. This third wave, while respecting women’s individual decisions and autonomy, was fraught with fragmentation. Without a singular identity, progress was slower. More recently, many have identified a fourth wave born out of the digital age. With the advent of social media and its ability to connect women globally, a new form of feminist consciousness and organizing has emerged.

The Women’s March on Washington and its sister marches throughout the world triggered yet another wave. This new wave – the pink wave –  has absorbed the strength of the others before it. Just as second-wave women burned their bras as a symbol of liberation from the patriarchy, pink-wave women donned pink pussyhats as they converged on Washington and cities nationwide as a symbolic “fuck you” to a newly sworn-in president who’s bragged about grabbing women’s “pussies.”

While tongue-in-cheek, this symbol of unity and reclamation of the word “pussy” packed a visual punch. Indicative of its bra burning foremothers, this wave is rooted in the tactics of its first and second ascendants. Adopting the mass protests that were key to securing the right to vote, and the legal victories of the 60’s and 70’s, this pink wave is powerful. The March on Washington, led by women of color, with a platform embracing intersectional feminism, incorporates the inclusiveness of the third and fourth waves. Its guiding values and principles centered the varying issues women face including environmental justice, immigration policy, economic justice, disability rights, indigenous rights, reproductive justice, LGBTQIA rights and racial justice. These written principles were not just lip-service. Each was reflected in some aspect of the march. Speakers and performers highlighted racialized violence by honoring those killed by police brutality. The presence of a sign-language interpreter indicated an effort to accommodate women with different abilities. Indigenous women took the stage, and we acknowledged we were marching on stolen land. While those who marched varied in their understanding and commitment to intersectional feminism, the March on Washington gave an example to follow.

In the masses of marchers, the power and potential of fourth wave feminism was realized. Social media and online feminism became the conduit for bringing this sea of women and allies together. Information on the march was shared via Twitter, Facebook, and even an app designed specifically for use on smartphones. Hashtags and livestreaming allowed those who could not attend to become involved and share in the experience. In the days and weeks after the march, social media will provide the platform for feminists to debate what went right and what went wrong. These outlets will facilitate growth and improvement at lightening speed. People are already using social media to plan and organize the next actions. This ability to instantaneously share information and strategies to resist the Trump administration is the gift of the fourth wave.

Each previous wave of feminism has added a vital element to this emerging pink wave. While the Trump presidency is unprecedented, so is this movement. Every person that attended the March on Washington, and the sister marches around the world demonstrated that our oppressions are unique, but we find strength in our commonality. Whether we are women, immigrants, people of color, LGBTQIA, low income or a combination of these identities, we are tied together by a common threat. Our pink hats symbolized our unity not despite our diversity, but because of it. Together, we form the pink wave, and together, we are an unstoppable force of nature.

Rachel Piazza is a TEDx speaker, co-founder of NOW’s first virtual chapter Young Feminists & Allies, and teaches feminist self-defense (www.feministselfdefense.com). She has a master’s degree in women’s and gender studies and teaches at Wilmington University.

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