Cole Archer works on a protest sign during a meeting of NC Forward in High Point, N.C., Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025. The group is traveling to Washington to take part in the People's March on Jan. 18 ahead of the inauguration. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)2025-01-18T05:06:08Z WASHINGTON (AP) Eight years since its historic first march, the Womens March is returning Saturday to the nations capital just before President-elect Donald Trumps inauguration.Rebranded and reorganized, the rally has a new name the Peoples March as a means to broaden support, especially during a reflective moment for progressive organizing after Trumps decisive win in November. The Republican takes the oath of office Monday.Women outraged over Trumps 2016 presidential win flocked to Washington in 2017 and organized large rallies in cities throughout the country, building the base of a grassroots movement that became known as the Womens March. The Washington rally alone attracted over 500,000 marchers, and millions more participated in local marches around the country, marking one of the largest single-day demonstrations in U.S. history. This year, the march is expected to be about one-tenth the size of the first one and comes amid a restrained moment of reflection as many progressive voters navigate feelings of exhaustion, disappointment and despair after Vice President Kamala Harris loss. The comparative quiet contrasts sharply with the white-knuckled fury of the inaugural rally as massive crowds shouted demands over megaphones and marched in pink pussyhats in response to Trumps first election win. The reality is that its just hard to capture lightning in a bottle, said Tamika Middleton, managing director at the Womens March. It was a really particular moment. In 2017, we had not seen a Trump presidency and the kind of vitriol that that represented. The movement fractured after that hugely successful day of protests over accusations that it was not diverse enough. This years rebrand as a Peoples March is the result of an overhaul intended to broaden the groups appeal. Saturdays demonstration will promote themes related to feminism, racial justice, anti-militarization and other issues and will end with discussions hosted by various social justice organizations. The Peoples March is unusual in the vast array of issues brought together under one umbrella, said Jo Reger, a sociology professor who researches social movements at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan. Womens suffrage marches, for example, were focused on a specific goal of voting rights.For a broad-based social justice movement such as the march, conflicting visions are impossible to avoid and there is immense pressure for organizers to meet everyones needs, Reger said. But she also said some discord isnt necessarily a bad thing.Often what it does is bring change and bring in new perspectives, especially of underrepresented voices, Reger said.Middleton, of the Womens March, said a massive demonstration like the one in 2017 is not the goal of Saturdays event. Instead, its to focus attention on a broader set of issues womens and reproductive rights, LGBTQ rights, immigration, climate and democracy rather than centering it more narrowly around Trump.Were not thinking about the march as the endgame, Middleton said. How do we get those folks who show up into organizations and into their political homes so they can keep fighting in their communities long term?