suffragist parade in sacramento

"It's important not to forget the spirit of the suffragists," said Heather Woodford of West Sacramento.

The march was actually a parade and took the name of "Women's Equality Day Commemorative Parade." Therefore, some marchers were dressed in period costumes representing historical women.

The parade attempted to recreate the 1913 Woman Suffrage parade featured in the 2004 movie "Iron Jawed Angels," staring Oscar-winner Hilary Swank. The movie is about defiant young activists who put their lives at risk to help American women win the right to vote.

Woodford said that during times of crisis, such as the current war in Iraq, women and children are the first to become victims of the devastation due to the "ingrained sexism in international order."

Woodford is a member of the Sacramento Code-Pink chapter, which along with the Davis chapter were two of the approximately 30 sponsors at Saturday's parade.

"There are a lot of groups and it's important to integrate gender-based issues into the mainstream. ... This needs to be a mainstream issue," Woodford said.

The march began at 9:30 a.m. at Southside Park in Sacramento and concluded at the West steps of the Capitol building for a rally.

Bill Durston, who is running for Congress in California's third congressional district, also spoke on the importance international affairs have on women and children.

In California, 25 percent of children live in poverty, said Durston, who acknowledged that many of them go to school hungry because of cutbacks in school nutrition programs.

Moreover, as a medical doctor, Durston told supporters he was running on a platform with the understanding that "the health-care system under which Americans are not only suffering, but (they) are literally dying because of lack of access to affordable medical treatment and preventive care."

Some of the medical treatment Durston spoke of is in regards to abortion. He said he is troubled by the interference of partisan politics in medical decisions that a woman makes in consultation with her physician.

Durston said he will work to keep abortion safe and legal.