How the Million Woman March Was Organized Without Major National Organizations

Overview

The Million Woman March, held on October 25, 1997, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was a historic gathering of predominantly African American women that drew an estimated hundreds of thousands to the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. Unlike the 1995 Million Man March, which was convened by the Nation of Islam and supported by a broad coalition of national organizations, the Million Woman March was organized almost entirely through grassroots efforts, without the backing of major civil rights or women’s organizations. The march was the vision of two Philadelphia community activists, Phile Chionesu and Asia Coney, who mobilized a decentralized network of women using word-of-mouth, flyers, and local media. The event focused on issues such as economic self-sufficiency, education, health, and political empowerment, and it sought to create a space for Black women to define their own agenda. The march’s success demonstrated the power of grassroots organizing and challenged traditional models of social movement leadership.

Historical Background

The 1990s saw a resurgence of large-scale marches in the United States, most notably the Million Man March in Washington, D.C., on October 16, 1995. That event, called by Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, brought together African American men for a day of atonement and recommitment to family and community. While many Black women supported the Million Man March, some felt that its male-centric focus left their specific concerns unaddressed. Concurrently, Black women were grappling with issues such as welfare reform, the HIV/AIDS epidemic, mass incarceration, and economic marginalization. The idea of a parallel march for women began to circulate in grassroots circles, but established organizations like the National Council of Negro Women (NCNW) and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) did not take up the call. This vacuum created an opportunity for independent activists to step forward.

Why It Was Organized

The Million Woman March was conceived as a direct response to the perceived absence of a unified, national platform for Black women’s issues. Organizers sought to address the “triple oppression” of race, gender, and class, and to highlight the contributions of Black women to social justice movements. The march aimed to foster self-reliance and community-based solutions rather than relying on government or established institutions. It also sought to heal divisions among Black women and to provide a space for spiritual renewal and collective empowerment. As Phile Chionesu stated, the march was “for the woman who has been left out, the woman who has been stepped on, the woman who has been told she is nothing.”

How Organizing Began

In early 1997, Phile Chionesu, a small-business owner and community activist, and Asia Coney, a housing advocate, met in Philadelphia and began discussing the need for a national gathering of Black women. They decided to organize the march themselves, with no prior experience in large-scale event planning and no institutional funding. They formed the Million Woman March, Inc., a small nonprofit, and began spreading the word through flyers distributed at beauty salons, churches, and community centers. They utilized phone trees, local Black radio stations, and emerging internet forums to reach women across the country. The organizing model was highly decentralized: women in different cities formed local committees, held fundraisers, and chartered buses to Philadelphia. The lack of a central organization meant that coordination was often chaotic, but it also allowed for a sense of ownership among participants. The organizers deliberately avoided seeking endorsements from major national groups, believing that such affiliations might dilute the march’s grassroots character. This decision, however, led to skepticism from some established leaders and media outlets.

What Happened During the Event

On the morning of October 25, 1997, women began gathering at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. The day was cold and rainy, but the crowd grew steadily. The program included speeches, musical performances, and prayer. Keynote speakers included Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, the South African anti-apartheid activist, and U.S. Representative Maxine Waters. Other speakers ranged from local activists to celebrities like Jada Pinkett Smith. The march itself was a symbolic procession from the Liberty Bell to the Parkway, though many participants simply gathered at the main stage. The atmosphere was described as both celebratory and solemn, with women sharing stories, singing, and holding signs with messages such as “Black Women United” and “Sisters for Change.” Unlike the Million Man March, there was no mass pledge or centralized call to action; instead, the emphasis was on individual and collective transformation.

Key People

Platform and Issues

The march’s platform, though not formally adopted as a single document, coalesced around several key themes:

• Economic Empowerment: Support for Black women-owned businesses, job training, and financial literacy.
• Education: Improving public schools, promoting higher education, and mentoring youth.
• Health and Wellness: Addressing breast cancer, HIV/AIDS, mental health, and reproductive justice.
• Political Participation: Voter registration, running for office, and holding elected officials accountable.
• Family and Community: Strengthening families, ending domestic violence, and supporting single mothers.
• Self-Determination: Encouraging Black women to define their own narratives and solutions.
• Criminal Justice Reform: Opposing mass incarceration and police brutality.
• Spiritual Renewal: Emphasizing faith and moral grounding as sources of strength.

Attendance Estimates

The wide discrepancy reflects the challenges of counting large, amorphous crowds and the political stakes of the numbers. Organizers’ figures were widely reported in Black media, while mainstream outlets often cited the lower police estimate.

Contemporary Media Coverage

Mainstream media coverage was mixed. Some outlets focused on the lack of a clear leader and the absence of major organizational backing, framing the march as disorganized. The Philadelphia Inquirer noted the “grassroots, almost improvisational” nature of the event. Black newspapers and radio stations, however, celebrated the march as a historic achievement. The event received limited national television coverage compared to the Million Man March, partly because organizers did not have a professional public relations team. Some prominent Black women leaders, such as Dorothy Height of the NCNW, expressed reservations about the march’s exclusionary approach, while others praised its independence.

Controversies / Disputed Claims

The most persistent controversy surrounds the attendance numbers, with organizers’ claims of over a million participants challenged by official estimates. Financial transparency was also questioned; some participants and journalists asked how the small organizing committee managed the funds raised through merchandise sales and donations. Additionally, the decision to not collaborate with established organizations led to tensions with figures like C. Delores Tucker, who criticized the march for lacking a clear policy agenda. There were also debates about the inclusion of LGBTQ+ women; while the march was generally welcoming, some conservative religious voices within the crowd created friction. The role of Winnie Mandela, a controversial figure due to her association with human rights abuses in South Africa, drew criticism from some quarters.

Historical Impact

The Million Woman March demonstrated that a large-scale national mobilization could be achieved without traditional organizational infrastructure. It inspired a wave of local activism, with many attendees returning home to start community programs, run for office, or form ongoing women’s circles. The march also influenced subsequent gatherings, such as the 2000 Million Mom March and the 2017 Women’s March, which adopted similar decentralized organizing models. Within Black feminist scholarship, the event is often cited as a turning point in the recognition of grassroots, working-class Black women’s leadership.

Legacy

The march’s legacy endures through the networks it created and the annual commemorations held in Philadelphia. Phile Chionesu and Asia Coney continued their activism, though the Million Woman March, Inc. did not become a permanent national organization. The event is remembered as a powerful assertion of Black women’s agency and a model for community-driven social change. In 2017, on the twentieth anniversary, a commemorative gathering reflected on the march’s impact and the ongoing struggles for racial and gender justice.

What Historians Say

Historians have analyzed the Million Woman March as a significant, if understudied, moment in American social movement history. Deborah Gray White, in her work on Black women’s activism, argues that the march represented a “new day” for Black feminism, one that centered the experiences of ordinary women rather than elite spokespersons. Other scholars, such as Kimberly Springer, have situated the march within the tradition of Black women’s self-help and community organizing, noting its departure from the institutionalized feminism of the 1970s. Critics within academia have pointed to the march’s lack of a sustained organizational structure as a limitation, but most agree that its symbolic and mobilizing power was profound.

Revision History

• October 2023: Article created with core sections and initial research.
• November 2023: Expanded “How Organizing Began” with details on grassroots methods; added attendance estimates table.
• January 2024: Incorporated scholarly perspectives and contemporary media coverage analysis.
• March 2024: Revised “Controversies” section to include financial transparency and LGBTQ+ inclusion debates.