Close to 210,000 Bay Area residents traveled to the cities of San Jose, Oakland and San Francisco yesterday to participate in a series of marches, most prominently Women’s Marches, in protest against Trump’s Friday inauguration. The number of demonstrators in major cities across the country as well as overseas significantly exceeded the amount of expected participants.

The crowd in San Jose began their demonstration with a 10 a.m. march at the San Jose City Hall and then held a rally from 12 to 3 p.m. at the Cesar Chavez Plaza. While protesters in Oakland also opened with a march—theirs starting at 10 a.m. but at Oakland’s Madison Park—San Francisco’s event first invited those interested to a rally at 3 p.m., then a 5 p.m. march from Market Street to the Justin Herman Plaza.

Individuals participating in the marches focused their efforts on raising awareness for a variety of issues; some carried signs with the slogans “Stop the War on Women” and “Women Can!” to draw attention to women’s rights, others aimed for a message of inclusivity and chanted “we are all immigrants.”

“I had made a sign [with the Maya Angelou quote] ‘We are only as blind as we want to be.’ I believe that we all have to be open to learning more about national issues; we need to better understand how the government controls the rights of citizens and how we as individuals can take action,” San Jose march attendee Evani Radiya-Dixit (12) said. “I personally feel strongly about birth control, abortion and related legal rights.”

Yesterday’s events, coordinated by the organization Women’s March Bay Area, are some of the sister marches to Washington D.C.’s Women’s March on Washington. Over half a million protesters—against a projected turnout of 200,000 participants—marched from the Capitol to the White House.

Participants came together in unexpected numbers in the United States as well as abroad; in Los Angeles an estimated 750,00 people demonstrated, in New York City and Chicago approximately 250,000 people marched and in London, Paris, Berlin and Sydney an overwhelming number of individuals extended their support for women in the U.S and stood as proponents of global change.

A number of individuals also travelled to participate in the march on Washington D.C., the heart of the movement. Bay Area resident Yasemin Denari Southworth describes her experience as one of the participants marching in solidarity for social equity in the country’s capital.

“I attended because I wanted to be a part of this movement and because I think now more than ever it is important for women’s and all people’s voices to be heard,” she said.  “I did not carry my own sign but wore pins that said ‘Love Trumps hate’ and ‘Let’s talk climate.’  I support equal rights and diversity and want to promote unity, peace, and the protection of our planet.”

Some protesters sported pink “pussyhats” during their marches and rallies. A nod to Trump’s leaked hot mic tape of comments on his sexual advances towards women, the clothing accessory was a prominent part of Women’s Marches across the country.

Ellie Lang-Ree (10), who attended the march in San Jose, described the significance of the “sea of pink” launched by the Pussyhat Project in the demonstrations.

“These hats have come to symbolize that women are in control of their own bodies and will not allow sexual assault or sexism to continue,” she said. “I do believe, however, that though these hats were awesome methods of showing solidarity with women against Trump and assault, they do not include our transgender sisters who, though they don’t have the same genitalia, identify as female and deserve the same equal rights as all cisgender and LGBTQ+ women.”

While the Women’s Marches took place in areas scattered across the globe, a palpable aura of passion pervaded the scenes of each demonstration and unified the marches as one worldwide movement.