This piece was originally published in the Washington Examiner on October 22, 2020.
It is wrong for Women’s March participants to intimidate conservatives into leaving a rally and a failed strategy to try to intimidate people into changing their views.
On Saturday, the Independent Women’s Forum-organized March for All Women gathered as a counter to the Women’s March, showcasing that it doesn’t represent all women. The rally featured Fox News Contributor Tammy Bruce, IWF President Carrie Lukas, actress Kristy Swanson, and a dozen other conservative women leaders. Held on the steps of the Supreme Court, the rally also served to highlight that a lot of women support the confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett.
After speaking about my experience of creating the Network of enlightened Women, an organization for young conservative women, and the opposition we have faced, I joined the cheering crowd. Throughout the event, the Black Lives Matter group gathered nearby played loud music and danced. There were plenty of people waving signs with conflicting viewpoints, but as it should be, it was peaceful — until the Women’s March arrived.
Women’s March protesters yelled at the group of conservative women gathered to share our views, called my friend a “c—” in front of her elementary school-aged children, and surrounded attendees. Some ultimately rushed the stage. I feared for my personal safety, so I quietly escaped before the rally was over.
The Women’s March started in the wake of Trump’s election and could have marked the start of a women’s movement that cut across political lines on the treatment and advancement of women. Instead, it quickly became about progressive politics. Anyone who doesn’t march in lockstep is excluded.
During her confirmation hearing, Barrett gave a memorable response after being questioned on whether some of Justice Antonin Scalia’s opinions were her own. She said, “I assure you, I have my own mind. Everything that he said is not necessarily what I would agree with or what I would do if I was Justice Barrett.”
I would have loved to see universal praise for that comment from women across the political spectrum. Women being judged for our minds, not based on our body parts, is a victory for feminism. Women being recognized for our achievements and attaining the most prestigious positions in American life is a victory for feminism. But that’s not actually what modern feminist organizers want.
Modern feminists have demonstrated that they don’t want women to think for ourselves but to think a certain way. They do not want women to succeed; they only want women who think like them and will do their political bidding to succeed.
Barrett’s simple statement, “I have my own mind,” resonates with conservative women across the country who are often insulted, bullied, and silenced for our views. The Women’s March, which embodies the modern feminist movement, should realize they are not winning if they are resorting to intimidation to convert people.
The modern feminist movement doesn’t speak for me, and it doesn’t speak for millions of women in America. Like Barrett, I have my own mind.
