This post first appeared on ThinkProgress.
Somewhere between 80 to 100,000 people from 32 states turned out to protest four years of drastic state Republican initiatives in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Saturday.
The “Moral March on Raleigh,” organized by Historic Thousands on Jones Street (HKonJ), marched from Shaw University to the state capitol to push back against the “immoral and unconstitutional policies” of Republican Gov. Pat McCrory during the 2013 NC General Assembly session. Since North Carolina Republicans took over both legislative chambers in 2010, legislators have eliminated a host of programs and raised taxes on the bottom 80 percent, repealed a tax credit for 900,000 working families, enforced voter suppression efforts, blocked Medicaid coverage, cut pre-Kindergarten funding, cut federal unemployment benefits and gave itself the authority to intervene in abortion lawsuits.
Activists have gathered at weekly protests, called Moral Mondays, in North Carolina since 2013 as a way to give voice to individuals whose rights were under attack by the Republican-controlled legislature. While there were no reported arrests in Saturday’s protest, hundreds of nonviolent protesters were arrested during last year’s Moral Monday events.
Here’s a look at 15 of the best photos from Saturday’s Moral March:
Doctors in white coats & healthcare activists stress need to expand Medicaid for 300K NC residents at #HKonJ #ncpol pic.twitter.com/J55Vx5rbxG
— Progress NC Action (@ProgressNow_NC) February 8, 2014
Dear @NCGOP #MoralMarch #hkonj #reprojustice pic.twitter.com/lPuycyOSHb
— Emma Lee (@emmaleemcg) February 8, 2014
Love all the uterus pics! #moralmarch #hkonj pic.twitter.com/BslWhpAQKQ
— Thena Robinson Mock (@thenarobinson) February 8, 2014
We are the ones we've been waiting for! #MoralMarch pic.twitter.com/mX9Mt54yLe
— Student Power NC (@StudentPowerNC) February 8, 2014
Diverse crowd speaking out for education at #MoralMarch pic.twitter.com/GBivhXNVhb
— Moral Mondays (@MoralMondays) February 8, 2014
5 reasons people gave for participating in Saturday's #MoralMarch @MoralMondays http://t.co/ypdW3OiDx7 pic.twitter.com/Ga4wkLfZSN
— WUNC (@wunc) February 9, 2014
This is what #democracy looks like! #moralmarch #hkonj #educationspring pic.twitter.com/sGSYdEPTzi
— Jeff Bryant (@jeffbcdm) February 8, 2014
My favorite sign of the day so far: the only Pope North Carolina needs #MoralMarch pic.twitter.com/Cuz7CULtlE
— Ari Berman (@AriBerman) February 8, 2014
#NC schools are not factories. #MoralMarch #ncgov #ncpol pic.twitter.com/EHZFmihwdD
— Moral Mondays (@MoralMondays) February 9, 2014
#MoralMarch Forward together, not one step back! pic.twitter.com/ThQdi7j06d
— NC NAACP (@ncnaacp) February 8, 2014
In-State tuition for @NCDREAMTeam #MoralMarch pic.twitter.com/9lcQ3XbvxA
— Moral Mondays (@MoralMondays) February 9, 2014
92 year old Rosanell Eaton, who's challenging NC voter suppression law, chanting 'fed up, fired up' #MoralMarch pic.twitter.com/bX4MdnMqml
— Ari Berman (@AriBerman) February 8, 2014
Standing on the side of love. Pay teachers fairly. #MoralMarch pic.twitter.com/aen2gYqFlZ
— Moral Mondays (@MoralMondays) February 9, 2014
Volunteers have arrived! #sslmoralmarch #forwardtogether #hkonj #moralmarch pic.twitter.com/0anW9Nrkli
— SideOfLoveCampaign (@SideofLove) February 8, 2014
The turnout at #MoralMarch is pretty incredible. Teachers, ministers, workers, students, parents, grandparents. pic.twitter.com/NKe3m4iFPE
— Danielle Belton (@blacksnob) February 8, 2014
