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Author: Aleena Gardezi

Women’s March Co-Chairs Share Message of Unity in New York Fashion Week

Posted February 14, 2017

On February 13, designer Mara Hoffman invited the Women’s March co-chairs, Bob Bland, Tamika D. Mallory, Carmen Perez, and Linda Sarsour – to participate in her Fall 2017 runway show at New York Fashion Week.

The women, all dressed in black, opened the show with quotes from Angela Davis, Audre Lorde, Maya Angelou and the mission statement of the Women’s March on Washington.

Full transcript below:

Perez: “We come together in the spirit of democracy, unity, love and strength, with a message that women’s rights are human rights. We stand together in solidarity recognizing that our vibrant and diverse communities are the strength of our country. Hear our voice.”

Bland: “I am no longer accepting the things that I cannot change. I am changing the things that I cannot accept. We stand together recognizing that defending the most marginalized among us is defending all of us. Hear our voice.”

Mallory: “It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept and celebrate those differences. We work peacefully while recognizing that there is no true peace until there is justice and equity for all. Hear our voice.”

Sarsour: “Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, and penetrates walls to thrive at its destination full of hope. We affirm our shared humanity and pronounce our bold message of resistance and self-determination. We must create a society in which all women are free. Hear our voice.”

Bland: “We stand together, honoring the champions of human rights, dignity and justice for those here and those before us. We dedicate ourselves to all the women around us.”

Perez: “To protect each other, we don’t always have to agree but we have to organize and stand in unity. Stand in solidarity. Stand together. Unity of actions does not mean that we have to be unanimous in thought but a injury to one is an injury to all.”

Mallory: “None of us are free until everyone is free. We fight for justice. We fight for it for all people and for all communities. We stand for women of color, we stand for women with disabilities, we stand for indigenous women, we stand for women being held in airports, and we stand for women behind bars.”

Sarsour: “We stand for the undocumented, the underrepresented, and the LGBTQIA community. We stand for the Muslim women, the women who show up and the ones who cannot.”

All: “Women’s rights are human rights.”

In a statement, Hoffman explained that her show was not only an opportunity to feature the fall collection, but also an opportunity to amplify a greater message of unity, inclusion, diversity, and feminism in a fashion space.

“We have witnessed these four women lead the largest human rights protest in history,” Hoffman said. “I stood in solidarity with them in D.C., and I will continue to support and lend my voice to them whenever I can to push their work for human rights, dignity, justice, and love forward.”

She also explained that the show’s theme was to celebrate the diverse, beauty and strength of women in this country, while also being a direct reflection of the unity, love, resistance and persistence that was witnessed recently with the Women’s Marches that have taken place around the world.

“Our involvement in Mara’s show was a real honor and something we felt compelled to do,” said the four co-chairs in a statement. “So many of our communities are being stripped away from basic human rights, that we must all come together and use our platforms to stand together.”

“We commend Mara and other designers who have made a public stance on today’s political climate,” they added. “The days of just sitting back and hoping for change are no longer an option.”