Photos: Seattle Women's March Draws Over 100,000

SEATTLE, WA - Along with events around the world held Saturday, the Women's March on Seattle drew thousands of people - over 100,000, according to some estimates - to draw attention to a range of political issues, and to rebuke the incoming President Donald Trump.

The Seattle march was one of over 600 held across the globe on Saturday, from Antarctica to Tel Aviv. The organizers of Seattle's march estimated that as many as 175,000 participated.

The group was so large that at one point it stretched the entire 3-1/2 mile march route, the Seattle Department of Transportation said. Former mayor Mike McGinn wrote on Twitter: "I've never seen a march this big in Seattle."

The march began early Saturday morning, with attendees gathering at Judkins Park in the Central District. That park is six blocks long, and by 10 a.m., almost the entire space was filled with people.

Outside the park, streets were packed with marchers either heading toward it or lining the streets of the march route. The approximately 3.6 mile route took marchers west on Jackson Street, north on 4th Avenue, and then west on Denny Way, and ending near the fountain at the Seattle Center.

Although many thousands gathered for the start of the march at Judkins Park, thousands more were lining the streets downtown waiting to join in as the marched passed by.

The march was a showcase for a number of political causes, but the theme of the day was clearly gender equity. In preparation for the march, women across Seattle - and the world - knitted pink "pussy hats" to wear in solidarity.

The march also carried an explicit anti-Donald Trump message. Indeed, the march in Seattle and others around the U.S. were organized in response to Trump's election. Hundreds of signs at the Seattle march expressed outrage at comments Trump made on an infamous Access Hollywood tape that many view as him admitting to sexual assault.

The women's march took place the morning after a chaotic protest at the University of Washington over a talk given by Breitbart.com pundit Milo Yiannopolous. One man was shot and severely injured, and protesters and Yiannopolous fans scuffled outside of Kane Hall.

The mood at the women's march, however, was upbeat. At Judkins Park, two bald eagles circled overhead, causing the crowd to erupt in cheers. Protesters were dancing in the streets, and Seattle police officers exchanged high-fives with marchers.

Leading the parade was a group of indigenous women whose singing and drumming moved some onlookers to tears.

The head of the march entered the Seattle Center around 1 p.m. Even then, some marches were still back at Judkins Park waiting to leave.

Close to 5 p.m., marchers were still filing into the Seattle Center. The march caused traffic delays throughout Seattle, although many streets downtown were flowing freely. The march route along Jackson Street was clear by 4 p.m.

Images via Patch.com