Women's March Organizer Linda Sarsour: "We Need to Translate the Emotions and Frustrations of Right Now"

posted on: Feb 4, 2017

Since then the march has been a catalyst for the continuous organizing we’ve seen across the country, especially in response to last week’s Muslim ban and refugee ban. Other Women’s March organizers—like myself—are focusing on Senate judiciary committee members and forcing them to not vote for Jeff Sessions because of his hand in the executive orders on immigration. He is known to be an obstacle for immigration, immigrant rights, and criminal justice reform. I’m working on a Stop Sessions campaign, in hope that he doesn’t get voted in as the next attorney general.

Beyond the everyday, we can’t forget that 2018 is right around the corner. One of the areas that many of us, including the Women’s March organizers, are focusing on is starting mass voter registration and voter engagement. We need to translate the emotions and the frustrations right now, and the fear that people have right now, into massive polls numbers to win back the House of Representatives. Right now there are no checks and balances. We need to get control back of at least one branch of government.

GLAMOUR: Do you feel like there has been enough support from larger institutional bodies for the people doing reactive organizing? I know the rally in downtown Manhattan was put together by some amazing grassroots groups, but most people are focusing on larger organizations like the ACLU. Do you think there will be greater coordination and support coming from the larger groups, or do you feel like you’re on your own?

LS: I haven’t seen coordination like this in my 16 years of doing community organizing, both locally and nationally. We absolutely have the support of groups like the ACLU, the Human Rights Campaign, and Planned Parenthood. I was the head of fundraising for the Women’s March, and I chose not to take money from corporations. This really worried people on my team, but what we found was that these big organizations really came through for us. Planned Parenthood, for example, was the premier sponsor of the Women’s March. And other groups—like the National Resource Defense Council, NARAL, Pro-Choice America, MoveOn.org, the Human Rights Campaign, and even labor unions like 1199, SEIU, and the American Federation of Teachers—came out in support.

For me, as a person of color, as a woman of color, as someone who runs, in comparison to these organizations, a small nonprofit in New York City, I have seen these major organizations realize that they need to put their money behind grassroots organizers and grassroots efforts that are led by women of color. That’s something I really haven’t seen in a long time.

GLAMOUR: I want to turn specifically to the Muslim ban. Though this is a horrible violation of human rights, there has been institutionalized, discrimination against Muslims since before Donald Trump. What kind of difficulties have Muslim men and women faced in the previous eight years during the Obama administration—and even before?

LS: The Muslim community has been suffering in silence for the past 15 years, both under the Bush administration and the Obama administration. Over the past few years, we have seen an exponential rise in hate crimes against Muslims or those perceived to be Muslims, which oftentimes includes the Sikh American community. People were outraged by the campaign rhetoric and promises of a Muslim registry program. But I was thinking to myself, That already happened. We registered 110,000 Muslim men from Muslim-majority countries starting in 2003. That program, called NSEERS, did not close down officially until just a few weeks before Trump took office.

I want my fellow Americans to know that I’m grateful for the solidarity—and grateful for the direct action and people standing up and saying, “We will stand up for our Muslim sisters and brothers”—but I also want them to understand that there was a time when their Muslim sisters and brothers needed them when we were organizing under those post-9/11 policies on our own. That said, it has been really beautiful to watch Americans organize in solidarity for the progressive movement in a way that I’ve never seen before, especially as a Muslim American who’s been doing organizing in New York City for the past 16 years.

GLAMOUR: For a lot of women, the Women’s March was the first time they felt like they could take part in organizing and activism, but they still are uncertain as to how they can help in other ways that make sense to them. Where would you tell them to start looking, and how can they give support to their Muslim brothers and sisters in the communities where they are?

LS: I’ve been telling people to do three things that I think are really important. Number one, we can’t protect each other if we don’t know each other. Do you know who your next-door neighbor is? Do you know who lives on your street? Is there a local mosque in your area that you can visit? If so, then do it. Number two, donate. It can be at the local level—groups that work with immigrants, or low-income women, or even regional Planned Parenthood chapters—or it can be to the Council on American-Islamic Relations or the ACLU. Twenty dollars goes a long way; $50 goes a long way. If you have more to give, do it. And number three, know who your elected officials are. Our members of the House and the Senate are our direct lines to the government. Find out who they are and call them. Visit their district offices. Tell them how you’re feeling. If you’re against these appointments that they’re putting forth, call them and tell them that you will not vote for them in 2018.

GLAMOUR: As you and other organizers are looking ahead, how do you find the personal, mental, and emotional resources to keep going? How can you stay energized and still take care of yourself. And what would you say to someone who wants to throw themselves into things but might feel overwhelmed?

LS: The most important thing that we could all do right now is to create a support network. I have my own support network of other organizers, activists, and attorneys. We need to protect ourselves and ensure that we have that system in place so that if anything were to happen to us, there are people who can organize on our behalf. That’s number one. It’s also important to remember that we’re also still human beings. We need to find moments of joy and moments to step away from the work. This is not a sprint; it’s a marathon. We need to take care of ourselves. And we need to give each other basic words of encouragement, especially in our current environment. The opposition doesn’t like to see people like us leading. They couldn’t fathom seeing white women and women of color working together.

Three of the four cochairs for the Women’s March on Washington were women of color, but there were plenty of white women who were organizing with us—people who understand that now is the time for them to use their privilege, their access, and their resources to fight for justice for all people. And the opposition is outraged. We’re able to bring millions of people into the streets—something that they can never fathom to do. And they’re using their own media outlets and the Internet to attack us and undermine us. They have no shame. They’re going to try to break you down, to the point where you’re afraid to stand up for yourself or you’re community, so we have to be prepared.

GLAMOUR: Obviously, there’s a lot of uncertainty about what the new administration, but are you still feeling hopeful? And what do you think people should be focusing on for next steps?

LS: I am the most optimistic organizer in this country. [Laughs.] I’ve been an organizer for 16 years. I have been part of fights where we have been told, “You will not win,” and we have won. When we were doing the Fight for 15 in New York State, the opposition told us we were out of our mind and no one would pay a $15 minimum wage. Well, guess what? There’s now a $15 minimum wage in a place like New York City. I was on the steering committee of the New York City Coalition on Muslim School Holidays. They said, “Never in your dreams will the New York City public school system recognize and acknowledge Muslim holidays, and shut down the entire public school system for your community.” Guess what happened? We won that campaign as well. People have been skeptical of the Women’s March on Washington. Our legitimacy only came from us proving to the rest of the world that we’re capable. Time and time again, organizers have proved that when we work together, when we organize together, that we can win. So that’s why I’m optimistic.