The second annual Women's March brought hundreds of thousands out to rally for equal rights, empowerment and against sexual harassment and misogyny.
Celebrities on Saturday lent their voices to Women's March movements across the globe as thousands took to the streets to empower women and fight against sexism and social injustice.
Marchers held demonstrations in Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Chicago and even overseas in cities like Rome, in a political movement that has grown significantly since the presidential election and the #MeToo campaign that arose out of the Harvey Weinstein scandal and other high-profile sexual misconduct cases.
Alyssa Milano helped the #MeToo hashtag -- based on a catchphrase used by social activist Tarana Burke since 2006 to help rally victims -- go viral in October, making it the rallying cry for the movement. She spoke at a march in Atlanta Saturday, urging crowds to not just use their voices to decry injustice, but also wield power through voting.
"Dare to make a difference. Dare to raise your voice. Dare to be a megaphone for others," Milano implored the crowd. "And most importantly, dare your friends, dare your neighbors, dare everyone you've ever met to go register and vote. Because democracy takes courage, democracy takes guts, but most of all, democracy takes you."
Asia Argento, one of the first women to come forward and publicly accuse Weinstein of sexual assault, rallied men and women in Rome, Italy, on Saturday, to "assess the necessity of women to speak out and change things."
“I’d like to see how many of you today acknowledge that you have put up with abuse, by raising your hands," Argento asked the crowd, according to the New York Times. "And not just sexual. Abuse of power. Because we are women, because we don’t have power.”
Patricia Arquette and Amber Tamblyn took to Twitter from marches in New York City, where Yoko Ono, Rosie Perez and Whoopi Goldberg also made appearances.
Jane Fonda helped lead a snowy demonstration at the Respect Rally on Saturday in Park City, Utah, near the Sundance Film Festival, arguing for equal pay and suggesting more women seek elected office.
And in a decidedly warmer Los Angeles, Natalie Portman joined other celebrities such as Olivia Wilde, Scarlett Johansson and Eva Longoria, to praise the progress women have made since the first Women's March a year ago.
"Because of you, the revolution is rolling," she told the crowd. "You told the world that time's up on violence. You told the world that time's up on sadness. you told the world that it's time for a new day."
But it was Viola Davis, who may have had the most powerful speech at the LA march. Saying she was there speaking not as an actress, but as a victim whose childhood had been robbed of her, she called out the destructive Jim Crow laws, appalling statistics on sexual assault and said that too many people have been left behind.
"We fall asleep when we're moving ahead and we don't look to the left and right and see that we're not including people in this move-ahead. Because really, at the end of the day, we only move forward when it doesn't cost us anything," she said. "But I'm here today saying that no one and nothing can be great unless it costs you something."
Davis then invoked the inscription on the Statute of Liberty, which invites all who "yearn to breathe free."
"Every single day, your job as an American citizen is not just to fight for your rights, it's to fight for the rights of every individual that is taking a breath, whose heart is pumping and breathing on this earth," she said. "Nothing and no one can be great without a cost."
Watch Viola Davis' full speech below.
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