It has been a little over a week since millions of people on all seven continents marched in support of equality for all in the women's marches. Since then, I've seen people trashing feminism, the marches, and other aspects of equality. Here are a number of reasons why I marched in Chicago and also why millions of others marched throughout the world.

I march because...

I believe that women deserve the right to choose what happens with their bodies. Women are not incubators for fetuses. A woman has the right to choose whether or not she carries a pregnancy to term. If she chooses not to, she has the right to safe, affordable care before, during, and after the abortion. She also deserves safe, affordable care if she carries the pregnancy to term or if she suffers a miscarriage. Women deserve safe, affordable healthcare period.

I believe in freedom of religion. I believe that people have the right to believe whatever they want, as long as it doesn't hurt anyone. No one religion is better than another and different religious beliefs are just varying ways of seeing the world in which we live in.

I believe that immigrants help make America great. Without immigration, the United States would not exist in the way that it has since 1492 and even prior. Immigration helps make America great and, without it, we lose our identity as a melting pot.

I believe that love is love. Being gay is not a choice someone makes; it's the way someone is born. LGBTQIA+ people deserve the right to get married to someone they love and they deserve equal protection under the law.

I believe that people of color deserve to be treated equally. They deserve to be able to walk down the street without fearing for their safety. Also, they deserve equal pay and equal job opportunities.

I believe that healthcare is a basic human right. Without affordable health care, thousands of people die every year from treatable conditions. Everyone deserves to the chance to live their lives without worrying about ending up in severe debt. After all, our Constitution states that we have the rights to "life, liberty, and property" and healthcare technically falls under the category of life.

I march to honor those who marched before me. A century ago, women marched for my right to work, vote, and own property and, now, millions of other women in this century march to finish what they started.

I march so future generations won't have to. I want the next generation of women to be born into a world that respects them and treats them as equal to men.

I march to let our current government know that I won't stand for bigotry. I won't stand for a "Muslim ban/registry" and I won't stand for the hatred being spewed by our current president.

I march for undocumented immigrants. First and foremost, undocumented immigrants are PEOPLE. They are people just like you and me. Calling them "illegals" is dehumanizing and rude. The Fourteenth amendment states that "nor shall any State deprive any PERSON of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any PERSON within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." Not citizen. PERSON.

I march for those with disabilities. They deserve to be treated as human. They don't deserve to be mocked on national television by someone who is supposed to be for ALL Americans. People with disabilities are people too.

I march for our environment. Climate change is real, regardless of what the current administration thinks. If we don't do something about it, there is a good chance that we won't have to worry about future generations because the world simply won't be livable anymore.

I march because education is one of the most important aspects to achieving in life. The current nominee for Secretary of Education knows nothing about it and she doesn't know how to run the education system. She also wants to prevent lower class children from getting an education.

I march because Native Americans have been treated poorly by the US government for hundreds of years. They deserve to keep their sacred lands and not have a dangerous pipeline cutting through them, threatening their water supply.

I march because sexual assault is NEVER okay, no matter how long it's been. Our current president talks about and treats women as if they are less than, as evident by his behavior and actions towards his wife during the inauguration. Rape culture is a big problem and it needs to be addressed.

I march because human rights are under attack and they must be protected at all costs.