The word “feminism” often has a negative connotation.

However, many who think this way do not  really understand the goals of feminism and are therefore scared or even threatened by the idea.

Feminism is defined by Merriam-Webster as “the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities.” This idea is so simple, yet there are so much hate toward the word. In fact, according to The Huffington Post, 20 percent of Americans that took their poll consider themselves feminists, but 82 percent of responses said they believe that “men and women should be social, political, and economic equals.”

This idea is vital to me as well as it is to many other people of both genders. The fact that this is still a problem in 2016 is frustrating. You would think that by now the problem would be a non-issue, but sadly it is just as much an issue as ever. Women are still not given the same pay as their male counterparts. Many females feel bias toward them in the workplace. According to nwlc.org, American women who work full time, year-round are only paid 80 cents compared to every dollar paid to men. Some females choose not to openly support other females for fear of judgement by the people in their community.

After the election of our next president, many feminists are sad to say the least. Based on many comments made by the President-Elect, people are terrified that the steps that have been made forward are going to be erased. One major step back is our new cabinet is set to include only three women compared to Obama’s eight out of 19 total members. People have worked so hard to take the steps forward, and are hurt that Americans chose a President that has repeatedly demeaned women and shown an indifference toward helping them gain power.

Because of the newly elected President and the Republican control of both the Senate and House of Representatives, the power is in their hands. If they want to defund Planned Parenthood, they definitely can and probably will. Without government funding, this health care organization will not be able to continue to provide the services they do now for women. After the election was a done deal, a large group of people are down right scared of the next four years and the damage that can be done in that time.

This brings us to inauguration day. Tomorrow, 200,000 people are anticipated to attend the Women’s March on Washington. The idea of the march is to send a message the very first day our new government is in office.

The march starts at 10 a.m. at the intersection of Independence Ave. and Third Street S.W. in DC, but attending is not the only way to show support. For those who want to participate but can’t make it to DC there are sister marches are planned in many other cities. There is a Women’s March taking place in Ann Arbor at 2 p.m. on the Saturday, the 21st. For more information on more marches, go to https://www.womensmarch.com/sisters. Also a large amount of people have shown interest in marches via satellite from around the world.

Women may feel like their voices have been silenced, but they still have the power to demand equal treatment and respectful treatment from their government.