Pasadena Residents Stage Women’s March to Celebrate Human Rights, Encourage Civic Engagement

Residents of Pasadena staged their own Women's March Saturday to celebrate human rights and encourage civic engagement.

More than 500 people gathered on the steps of Pasadena's City Hall early Saturday morning to listen to Rep. Judy Chu, D-Pasadena, and other speakers before taking the Metro Gold Line to join the larger women's rally in downtown Los Angeles, the Pasadena Star-News reported.

"What an incredible sight I see before me: hundreds of women marching for their rights," Chu told those assembled, according to the newspaper. "It's so incredible, and to think about what's happening all across this country, over 600 marches, over 2.2 million women fighting for their rights."

Chu was among the Democratic lawmakers who boycotted President Donald Trump's inauguration on Friday, citing Trump's insult of civil rights leader Rep. John Lewis, D-Georgia, as the reason.

Sen. Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles, assured Pasadena residents of all stripes that California would stand behind them.

"One election, and one man, will not change the values of who we are as a great state, California," de Leon said.

Groups of demonstrators awaited trains at Metro Gold Line stations along the 210 Freeway between the San Gabriel Valley and Los Angeles throughout the morning, trying to make their way downtown.