Longwood junior Brenda Pereira is the president of the university's Hispanic Latino Association, was featured on multiple news broadcasts when Longwood hosted the 2016 vice presidential debate, and she recently participated in three protests in the nation's capital, including one on inauguration day and the global women's march the next day.
Jan. 20, 2017. Inauguration Day. I started my route to Washington, D.C. at 7 a.m. I went with my sign reading, “No human being is illegal,” and joined the Answer Coalition alongside many other organizations protesting at the entrance to Pennsylvania Ave. We acquired a permit to protest on the inauguration route, but were not allowed entry due to the size of the group protesting.
The group began marching around 12 p.m. to union station, where the Black Lives Matter organization set up base. As I walked into this massive crowd, I was filled with emotions. All you could see were signs of love and unity, live music and a sea of fists in the air chanting, “LOVE not HATE!”
From Union Station we marched to K Street. This is where the destruction of property occurred. It happened in the blink of an eye. People who were wearing all black with masked faces ran through the crowd, and I suddenly heard glass braking. Immediately afterward, smoke filled the air. I couldn’t run fast enough and got caught in the smoke.
Breathing became hard and my eyes started shutting. I was able to get out of the crowds, and looked around to see everyone’s faces in complete shock. The few friends I had made while marching were asking, "What happened? Who did this?"
The smoke cleared, and I turned around to see two cars with broken windows and writing on them. Everything went silent.
My group started making our way out of the crowd when we heard an explosion, and a wall of fire appeared. SWAT uniformed police officers pushed us away from the fire for our safety. The marchers then regrouped, sitting away from the chaos, and began chanting, “Peace!”
I marched today because I refuse to normalize the misogyny, Islamophobia and the blunt racism Donald Trump built his campaign on. While there were a few who demonstrated their intolerance in an unacceptable way, causing destruction and mayhem, there were hundreds who stood against them and voiced their concern in a peaceful manner.
January 21, 2017. Donald J. Trump’s first full day as the president of the United States of America. I made way back up to D.C. for the Women’s March. However, this time it was nearly impossible to enter the city.
My family and I parked as close as we could and walked with groups of people across the bridge from Virginia to Independence Ave. The crowds were filled with pink. People from all backgrounds, movements, religions, ethnicities and sexual orientations came together.
For me, it was a moment I will never forget. Looking around at thousands of people standing for unity was breathtaking. This is America. Incredible speeches from strong women, including Scarlett Johansson, America Ferrera, Alicia Keys, Ashley Judd, Sophie Cruz, Linda Sarsour and many more, filled the streets of D.C. with empowerment.
The Women’s March was never a rejection of President Trump, but instead a loud, “I stand with you!” to women, Muslims, immigrants, Black Lives Matter and so many more. The Women’s March remained peaceful all over the world and will go down in history.
As an activist, my participation in these protests and marches are rooted from a place of hope. This has become more than politics, more than Democrats vs. Republicans, more than who won. It is a movement of humanity. In a time where social media gives everyone a voice, it has become impossible to remain silent.
I encourage everyone to become more involved. Stand up for what you believe. You are not alone. You matter.
“In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
With so much love,
Brenda Pereira
Opinions reflected in this piece do not reflect those of The Rotunda.
Longwood junior Brenda Pereira carried a sign reading, "No one is free when others are oppressed" as she marched with fellow protesters during the global Women's March on Jan. 21.
Hispanic Latino Association President Brenda Pereira protested on President Donald Trump's inauguration day in Washington, D.C.on Jan. 20. Her sign read, "No human being is illegal."
