Baltimore, BWI train stations overflowing with travelers to Women’s March on Washington

Jan. 21--WASHINGTON -- Penn Station in Baltimore felt like Penn Station in New York Saturday morning as thousands of people on their way to the Women's March in Washington waited in lines that snaked from the tracks to the streets.

They wore pink hats, carried signs and even a blow-up doll with a Donald Trump wig. They came from Boston, Florida, Seattle and even Zurich, Switzerland. And they ranged in age from toddlers to 80 year olds.

But most hailed from around the Baltimore region and had converged on the downtown train station to catch MARC trains that were packed to capacity and Amtrak lines that had sold out yesterday.

They came for a single purpose: to express solidarity against a Republican president and Congress they view as hostile to women and civil rights.

Kimberly Woods, an Amtrak spokeswoman, said many trains were sold out Saturday and Sunday, and that Amtrak had added trains and seating capacity on Northeast Regional and Acela Express trains to D.C.

Suhair Al Khatib, deputy administrator for the Maryland Transit Administration, said six extra trains were put into service in addition to the one that had been scheduled for a 7:30 a.m. departure. Three left from Penn Station but the one that departed from Martin State Airport skipped Baltimore because it was already full.

Each train is carrying 1,200 people. So before 10 a.m. nearly 8,000 people had been loaded and moved out of the Baltimore area, way more than anticipated, he said.

"It's like six Southwest Airlines planes loading at the same time," Al Khatib said. "There is no schedule."

Around 11:15 a.m., MTA tweeted that "MARC has cleared all passengers from Penn Station." The administration added that a train heading south had "plenty of room to accommodate passengers at all other stops."

Helene O'Brien, 63, of Cambridge, Mass. was traveling with her daughter Saturday. They were among hundreds stuck on a MARC train platform near BWI Airport.

"We were here almost an hour early for the 7:50 [a.m.] train. It flew by and didn't pick anyone up," O'Brien said. "They told us the next train would be here at 8:45. There's no way. They said they added cars."

Many were still on the stairways at the station, O'Brien said. "They can't even get onto the platform," she said.

Outside Penn Station, the line stretched north on Charles and around to St. Paul. Crowds cheered and chanted and waved signs.

Cathi Gay, 67, and her daughter Liz Gay, 42, flew into BWI airport from different corners of the country: Cathi from Sebastian, Fla., and Liz from Seattle.

They agreed that they had come to march because they, like most of the demonstrators here, feel that President Donald J. Trump is "dangerous for our country," the elder Gay said.

"And he's a threat to democracy," added her daughter.

Gladys Shahtou, 26, was visiting from Zurich, Switzerland and decided she had to attend the march. She waited in line for a ticket while holding a sign that said, in German, that when women unite they can accomplish anything.

"Women have progressed so far but we still have a long way to go," Shahtou said.

Archana Varma, 29, is a psychiatrist at the University of Maryland Medical Center in her final year of her residency. She was shocked by the size of the crowd and assumed she'd be able to buy a ticket and jump on a MARC train.

Varma said she is marching on behalf of her patients and to stand up for the "reproductive rights of women" that she feels the Republican-controlled Congress and Trump could limit by defunding Planned Parenthood.

"I don't want them to set back years of progress that we've made," Varma said.

Argentine Craig, 80, is a retired social sciences professor who chairs an education program at the Baltimore Ethical Society. Craig and other members of her group were meeting members of the Virginia and Washington ethical societies.

"It's more than what I expected," Craig said of the crowd cramming into Penn Station.

She said the Trump Administration threatens two issues that are critical to Baltimore: housing and health care.

"The message I would like them to hear is not to repeal the Affordable Care Act, and to work with Democrats to make it even better," Craig said.

Christina Rivera, 34, who flew in from Rochester, Minn., said she wanted to add some humor to a serious message. She carried a blow up male doll with a Trump wig.

Rivera believes Republicans threaten to defund critical work carried out by Planned Parenthood and other groups related to expanding access to birth control, testing and treatment for sexually transmitted diseases, and abortions.

"Those are incredibly important public health efforts," Rivera said.

Erin Albanese, 45, who flew from Seattle to attend the march, stopped in Baltimore on Friday night before taking the MARC train with friends.

"I came to say we're not giving up and we will resist every step of the way," she said.

Albanese, a mother and an attorney, was compelled to attend after Trump's election left her in "shock and disbelief" and sparked a desire to become politically active.

As a mother of a 6-year-old daughter, Albanese said being a parent has taken up the bulk of her attention. But the election was such a shock she realized she had to make a change. She immediately started taking classes to reactivate her law license in Washington and helping activist organizations on the West Coast such as Together We Will, Action Together and Suit Up.

"I felt really compelled when I woke up that morning after the election," she said. "I've been talking to some local attorneys who have experience in activist defense. I felt like activists are going to really need lawyers. We can't rely on politicians to choose how things are going to happen."

Sisters Julie Hawkins and Susan Baldwin flew from San Francisco to New York City on Tuesday. On the Amtrak train on Saturday they sported matching sweatshirts they made that featured the word "resisterhood" -- with sister highlighted in red.

The 60-something sisters came up with the idea days after the election when they both got tattoos on Canal Street in New York City that say "resist". They spotted the "sist" and came up with the idea

"For baby boomers, we have the time, resources and influence to make a difference, said Julie, 63, a banker. "It's like the 60s all over again except pot is legal. This is going to be transformative for the women's movement."

In addition to D.C., marches were planned all over the country, including in Baltimore and Annapolis.

The Feminist Majority Foundation, which advances the legal, social and political equality of women with men, estimated there were some 616 marches around the nation scheduled for Saturday. The Women's March initially began as a Facebook post by a grandmother in Hawaii, Teresa Shook.

Andrew Dew Steele, president of Emerge America, which trains Democratic women to run for elective office, said she hopes the energy from the Women's March translates into more female representation in local, state and federal positions. Mexico, China and Pakistan have more women serving in national legislatures than the U.S. Congress, where women make up 19 percent of the total membership.

"Donald Trump's election was the biggest slap in the face to the women's movement that we've ever experienced in modern history," Steele said. "When women woke up on the day after the election they felt absolutely devastated. Women needed to find something to do immediately."

Women, especially those who supported Democrat Hillary Clinton, "are really, really angry."

On Sunday, Emily's List and Emerge were scheduled to host a joint training event for 500 women interested in running for public office. Nearly 1,000 women expressed interest, but the groups did not have a big enough venue to accommodate the demand.

"That's really something fantastic that can come out of this devastating election," Steele said. "The reason we don't have enough women winning office is we don't have enough women running."

Baltimore Sun reporters Jessica Anderson and Sean Welsh contributed to this story.

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