Sinclair and Dean family group holding their placards at the Women's March on Washington in Wellington

This photograph shows Rebecca Sinclair and her four daughters (left to right: Frankie, Audrey, Opal and Lola Dean) with their handmade placards carried on the Women's March on Washington in Wellington on 21 January 2017. They marched from Parliament to Civic Square where this photograph was taken.

The Women's March was a global phenomenon which took place on the same day throughout the world featuring a broad coalition of nearly five million participants in over 600 Sister Marches in 60 countries on all seven continents. It was timed to protest the inauguration of the new United States president Donald Trump, and intended to send a message to his administration on its first day in office that women's rights are human rights.

'Sister Marches' took place across New Zealand with the largest marches in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin. Their mission was to 'stand together in solidarity with our partners and children for the protection of our rights, our safety, our health, and our families - recognising that our vibrant and diverse communities are the strength of our country' (Women's March on Washington Aotearoa New Zealand Facebook).

Social media had enabled the idea to sweep rapidly across America and around the world. The original ethos of the Sister Marches was one of solidarity with America, but shifted to a global perspective, with many marchers concerned not only by Trump's misogynistic attitudes, but also his effect on global politics; rising far-right populism around the world; and local concerns over citizens' rights.

Making and carrying the placards

Rebecca and her daughters made their placards together. She recalls: 'I did the lettering and the girls coloured in and decorated the signs. We came up with the slogans together (mainly me, but they helped). We got lots of appreciative reactions and a lot of people photographing us — especially the girls. I think they were a bit of a novelty because they were young. The rainbow colours were because we wanted to represent diversity and difference, and also because we wanted to promote love and happiness rather than the negative messages that were coming from Trump and his followers. The fact that rainbow colours are associated with LGBTQI was also intended - we were going for the full gamut of acceptance: embracing diversity in all its forms. We wanted to have them clearly grounded in Aotearoa, which is why we chose 'Aroha Trumps Hate' and 'Aroha' on two of them. We were there to physically stand up and be counted for something so incredibly important, and the girls wanted to be a part of making their voices heard too.'