The Handmaid’s Tale is a timely, terrifying dystopian TV series. In the Republic of Gilead, fertile women become baby-making servants for families in power. The control of women’s bodies is painfully reflective of the Christian, anti-choice ideologies forced onto women’s bodies in Trump’s America. As the president visited Warsaw, Poland, a group of protesters donned the red robes and white bonnets of the Handmaids on our screens.
Footage of the demonstration shows the women in the bonnets – called ‘wings’ in Margaret Atwood’s original book – surrounded by rainbow flags, placards that read “together against racism”, “Dumb Trump” and “Lock him up – Putin’s puppet”. Following a speech where they rallied “we will never become handmaids, we won’t allow it”, the Handmaids ripped up their bonnets.
Women in costume recently marched outside the Capitol building in Washington D.C, a protest organised by Planned Parenthood to challenge GOP healthcare bill, set to ravage basic healthcare coverage for millions of Americans. Handmaid protests have also taken place in Texas and California, demonstrating against policy that threatens reproductive rights.
The protest in Warsaw culminated in Krasinskich Square, as many gathered to see Trump before he joined other world leaders in Germany for the G20 summit. The Handmaids joined a legion of protesters in everyday clothes.
“The current president of the United States is not only a sexist and a misogynist who often brags about molesting women but also someone who really endangers our Earth,” one woman told CNN. She pointed to Trump’s recent decision to remove the U.S from the Paris climate change agreement.