A group of UWindsor professors participated Saturday in the Women’s March on Washington, wearing crocheted pink hats and raising their voices in defense of human rights a day after the inauguration of Donald Trump as president of the United States.

“The rhetoric of the past election cycle has insulted, demonized, and threatened many of us — and our communities are hurting and scared,” said a mission statement by march organizers. “We are confronted with the question of how to move forward in the face of national and international concern and fear.”

The UWindsor contingent included psychology professors Kimberley Babb, Lori Buchanan, Kathryn Lafreniere, Jill Singleton-Jackson and Shelagh Towson; sociology professor Eleanor Maticka-Tyndale; and philosophy professor Catherine Hundleby, who also holds an appointment in women’s and gender studies. Several brought their daughters along; Drs. Buchanan and Hundleby crocheted enough hats to cover the group and share with other marchers and supporters.

“A wonderful time was had by all,” Hundleby says of the group. “We marched for our friends, our mothers, daughters, and nieces, as well as for people very different from ourselves, those we have never met, and men who suffer from injustice. 

“One of the main benefits of any political rally, and the D.C. march in particular along with its sister marches around the world, is that it assures people that they are not alone in their distress.”

Other UWindsor employees, students and alumni boarded a chartered bus to join the march or participated in a solidarity march along Windsor’s riverfront.