Atlanta Women's March Organizer: 'We Stand Together'

ATLANTA, GA -- Thousands are expected to gather in downtown Atlanta this weekend for the Atlanta March for Social Justice & Women.

The march will begin Saturday at 1 p.m. ET at the Center for Civil and Human Rights on Ivan Allen Jr. Boulevard and end at the Georgia State Capitol at 5 p.m..

Co-organizer Gina Gareau-Clark told Patch that the march will be a show of unity for all those who feel that their human rights are in jeopardy.

"The organizers have felt from the beginning that this march should represent all whose human rights continue to be threatened. I have received 'Why I March' statements from volunteers, community partners and marchers," she said.

Read more: Women's marches set for Atlanta and D.C.

The march coincides with a much larger one slated the same day in Washington, D.C. The Women’s March on Washington may well rival the crowds at the Inauguration of President-Elect Donald Trump, one day earlier.

Washington D.C.'s transit system announced that it would add trains to accommodate the expected crowds, according to the Washington Post.

In Atlanta, MARTA has made no such announcement yet. Still, organizers hope to send a strong message to the city's leaders that a cross-section of peoples support real change from the government.

"As we come forward, you see color, you see gender, you may see religion or sexual orientation. But we are much more than that," Gareau-Clark said. "We are survivors of hate crimes, sexual assault, sexual harassment and domestic violence. We have been passed over for jobs and lived in poverty. We are disabled, face terminal illness and lost health care coverage. We were raised in interracial families, are interracially married, have multiracial children. And we stand together as allies, as friends, to learn about one another and the human rights issues we face."

The marches come at a cantankerous time for the nation and the region. The election of Trump, along with a wave of a reawakening of civic activism from several groups, has caused many to buck at the political climate.

Scores of Democrats have vowed to skip the inauguration, using their absence at Friday's event as a protest against the incoming administration.

Speakers at the Atlanta march include:

-- Stacey Y. Abrams, House Minority Leader for the Georgia General Assembly and State Representative for the 89th House District

-- Shirley Franklin, former mayor of Atlanta

-- Park Cannon, and I’m proud to be the Democratic State Representative for Georgia House District 58.

-- Stephanie Davis is the former executive director of Georgia Women for a Change.

-- Francys Johnson, the State President of the Georgia NAACP.

-- Edward Ahmed Mitchell, a civil rights attorney and executive director of the Georgia chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-GA)

-- Hank Johnson, U.S. House of Representatives for Georgia’s Fourth Congressional District

-- Tiffany Roberts, a civil rights and criminal defense attorney and volunteer at BlackLivesMatter Atlanta.

-- Luma Mufleh, CEO and coach of the Fugees soccer team.

Image via Pixabay