NEW YORK — A mother walked down Second Avenue, a red and blue poster tucked under her arm as her daughter skipped alongside.

Another woman scribbled “P*ssy Grabs Back” on a piece of poster board with a black Sharpie while she walked.

And down in the 86th Street and Lexington Avenue subway, people wearing pink knitted hats poured down the stairs. They shoved into the downtown train, packing every car with discussion about the recent presidential election and inauguration of Donald Trump.

Even from dozens of blocks uptown, it was clear where all these people were headed: the Women’s March on New York City.

The event was a spin on the Women’s March on Washington, which also took place Saturday to protest President Trump’s inauguration. In an email, event organizers said they expected at least 100,000 people to march in New York. More than 250,000 people showed up, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Mothers and fathers, celebrities and toddlers, students and senators all headed to Dag Hammarskjold Plaza to march toward Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue.

One of those people was Ward Moeller, an alumnus of the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse. He and his wife, Joanne, said they showed up because of their daughters and their belief in equality.

“I’m a man out here, I didn’t know what it was going to be like, but this matters to me,” Moeller said.

The Moellers stood on a street corner, often posing for pictures with their signs — Ward’s read “Trump don’t grab my daughters.” Like them, many marchers stopped blocks away from the march’s staging area. Even an hour before the march’s start time, it was impossible to get closer to Dag Hammarskjold Plaza.

So they protested where they stood.

15-year-olds Stella Wunder and Reese Liebmann made their views clear with posters and their clothing.

“This new administration might not be doing enough to preserve the equality and justice we all deserve,” Liebmann said.

Wunder held a sign with quotes from the musicals “Hamilton” and “Les Miserables”: “Do you hear the people sing? Singing the song of angry (wo)men.” Liebmann wore a hat that read “Make America Gay Again,” a play off Trump’s famous “Make America Great Again” slogan.

Eventually, though, protesters started to become restless as it became clear that there wasn’t going to be an organized march, more than two hours after the march’s planned start time. Hundreds of protesters were stuck in place and gave up trying to reach the staging area at 47th Street. Instead, they chanted and waved signs in place.

During lulls, some chatted with other protesters and pointed out their favorite signs. Others questioned if they should try heading to the other end of the street, or keep pushing forward.

But the crowd soon found its way and started moving. Just like in Washington and Chicago, there were too many people to take one organized route. So they filled every street they could and headed west — away from the staging area and toward Fifth Avenue and Trump Tower.

Cars were still flowing when march staging began, but those streets were quickly cleared of anything but human traffic. Taxis, stuck at crosswalks, honked, though it was unclear whether that was in support or frustration. Many had nowhere to go until marchers completely left the streets.

Meanwhile, New York City Police Department officers stood at crosswalks and barricades, directing marchers toward bathrooms and subway stops.

“I don’t mind this. This is peaceful,” an NYPD officer said to marchers stuck at a standstill on Fifth Avenue.

Barricades closed off 54th, 55th and 56th streets between Fifth and Madison avenues — streets that led right to Trump Tower. But marchers didn’t challenge officers or try to get down those streets. Walking a few blocks down, they could slowly get to Fifth Avenue.

Throughout the entire protest, there was no sign of violence — or of Trump supporters. And as much as marchers seemed happy to be protesting, many were disappointed they had to be there at all.

They said they couldn’t believe their beliefs were something they had to fight for.

Some signs read, “I can’t believe we have to do this again,” referencing past protests for similar goals. But at the same time, some, like Mary Beth Kooper, said the protest was reassuring.

“The only good thing he’s done is stirred up people to be participants in democracy more,” Kooper said. “Every cloud has a silver lining, and that’s the only one I can see right now.”

Published on January 21, 2017 at 6:45 pm

Contact Kathryn: kjkrawcz@syr.edu | @kathrynkrawczyk