The Hear Her Rally: Making College Prep History

By Anika S. '26

On Monday, March 31st, College Prep’s Feminist Union made history by organizing the very first feminist rally led by College Prep students. The rally, which drew students from Head-Royce, Bishop O’Dowd, Berkeley High, and Bentley, was organized and led by the five determined leaders of College Prep’s Feminist Union: Sara Fibrichova (senior), Lila Trautman (senior), Jasmine Mongue (junior), Maite Argote (sophomore), and Elsa Yeh (sophomore).

The “Hear Her” rally aimed to fight and raise awareness on the threat to abortion access that exists today against cis and trans women, and they listed their demands on this document. The mission statement of the rally was as follows:

“We, the young cis and trans women of the Bay Area, unite to stand firm in the face of a changing political landscape that threatens our reproductive rights and the future of all women and marginalized genders. Our mission is to amplify the voices of young girls and trans individuals, to protect and reclaim our autonomy, and to create a society where every person has the right to make choices about their bodies without fear or interference. We are committed to education, empowerment, and activism, using our collective strength to challenge oppressive systems, fight for justice, and ensure that reproductive freedom is a right, not a privilege. Together, we rise — with courage, resilience, and unwavering determination — to protect the future we deserve.”

The crowd of mostly students, accompanied by some parents and teachers, gathered in the parking lot of Rockridge BART, decked out in pink and carrying signs that sported slogans such as “not your uterus, not your opinion,” “you can only ban safe abortion,” and “women’s rights are human rights.” Students of all genders showed their support at the rally, a fact that many female-identifying students later said brought them joy and sense of pride in their community.

At around 11:30 a.m., a series of speakers took turns standing on the back of a pickup-truck-turned-stage, speaking to the crowd through a microphone. A speaker named Sonja Goetsch-Avila, a board member at ACCESS RJ (Reproductive Justice), kicked off the speeches with empowering call-and-response chants, and Director of Development at the Oakland LGBTQ Center Joanna Holden followed. 

Sophomore Aida Amin began the student speeches with a poem, “Still I Rise” by Maya Angelou. Following Amin, junior Deirdre Brown gave an original speech highlighting some incredibly powerful and notable women of the past and present who have contributed greatly to the advancement of feminism.

Next, Junior Inez Aboitiz Wolf presented an emotional speech that held the audience, specifically male-identifying students, accountable for the role they play in misogyny and the restraints on feminism. Senior Joss Meir felt that Inez’s focus on men’s role was crucial: “I think what’s important for men to take away is that…men were there to support their friends, as allies to their sisters, mothers, [and] friends…but it’s not enough just to be there…and I think that’s very true.”

After Inez, freshmen Elsa Chun read her original poem, “Give Me Back My Body,” addressing the government and regular citizens, and junior Mina Fedor gave an original speech on harms being inflicted upon female bodies under abortion bans. “These are not pro-life policies if they actively deny care to women facing health complications,” she said. “These are not pro-family policies if they put the life of the mother at risk.”

Fibrichova finished off the speeches by reading one by Jessica Hipona, a Berkley High School senior who was unable to make the rally.

Overall, the rally was a monumental success, drawing in close to 200 students. “I feel really good about how it went,” Mongue said. “I think there was so much support from the community, and I was really excited to see that kind of participation, and, like, civic engagement from our student body…We learn so much at CPS about movements, but it’s a whole other thing to actually care and participate in one of your own, and I feel like showing up for this was an example of putting all of that learning into action.”

The tremendous attendance of the College Prep community was one that had a resounding effect on attendees. “The whole time, I felt like crying, and not because I was afraid or uncertain or angry for our future, but rather because I was so inspired and hopeful and motivated by the support of all the people who showed up and showed out for such an important cause,” said junior Lila Mathus.

Junior Scarlett Lang echoed this sentiment, saying, “The Hear Her rally made me feel incredibly empowered and grateful to be a part of such a vibrant community of such amazing people.”

The future importance of showing up as a community was definitely hammered into the minds of rally attendees. Senior Noah Beltran said, “What was made clear to me through the speakers was that the issue of reproductive rights is something that affects all of us — it’s a reflection of our values as a community and as a country. This is an issue that requires the active work of everyone in society — we need solidarity across identities in order to secure this human right to bodily autonomy.”

Rally-goers left the BART parking lot reflecting on what the brave, powerful speakers had brought up in their speeches. Many left with a call to action, a commitment to achieving all that is left to be accomplished.

Ellie Rotblat brought up an idea from Aboitiz Wolf’s speech: “Choosing feminism doesn’t just start at rallies like this, but begins in our everyday conversations even when we think people aren’t listening.”

Male-identifying students were not in any way excluded from this call to action. Beltran noted, “Especially for male-identifying people and those of us who are not suffering as directly from limits on reproductive rights, we have a responsibility to hold ourselves accountable, to act with awareness and intentionality, if we want to build the future we say we want.” 

Meir seems to be optimistic about the College Prep male population’s ability to listen and truly absorb what the speakers were saying. “I thought what [Inez] said was…definitely something that was heard and well received by the men in the crowd and will hopefully have beautiful implications for how everybody there speaks and thinks and acts.”

All in all? College Prep’s feminist union leaders should be proud of what they accomplished.

Mongue said that College Prep’s Feminist Union still has more plans for this semester, even after this spectacular feat of organization and dedication: “This is not the end.”