We Achieved All These Feminist Victories During Trump's First 100 Days

Many women who find Trump unfit to be president are channeling their frustration into something positive for the future by committing to run for office. According to NPR, early signs from the groups that work with women considering running for office indicate a level of intense interest not seen in at least 25 years.

"Some of it is absolutely a reaction to President Trump and his policies," Jean Sinzdak of the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University told NPR. "For others, it is Hillary Clinton's loss," because the fact that we don't have a woman president "sort of woke them up to the idea that maybe we haven't made as much progress as we thought."

Interested in running? She Should Run is working to create a culture that inspires women and girls to aspire toward public leadership. Raise your hand, or ask a woman to run.

Despite running on a platform that he would block people from traveling to the United States from several Muslim-majority countries, Trump's temporary travel ban has twice been halted. The executive order, signed Jan. 27, restricted people from seven Muslim-majority countries (Iraq, Iran, Syria, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen) from entering the United States for 90 days. It also prevented refugees from entering for 120 days, and suspended Syrian refugees indefinitely. It was a crushing blow for those seeking to flee oppression and war in their home countries.

But Judge James Robart issued a temporary order preventing the government from enforcing parts of the ban Feb. 3, and a court of appeals upheld the restraining order. Then, when Trump then tried to move forward with an amended version of the ban, that one was blocked in March by a federal court in Hawaii and a federal judge in Maryland. Resistance works.

One success you can celebrate out of Trump's first 100 days is the fact that he did succeed in uniting many Americans, though perhaps not in the way he intended. People across America and around the world peacefully took to the streets Jan. 21 to express their First Amendment rights in hundreds of sister marches to the Women's March On Washington, and at sister marches around the world. The protest is being touted as the largest in U.S. history. Well done!

Protesters demanded an end to violence against women, preservation of women's reproductive rights, protection of rights for the LGBTQIA community, protection of women's rights in the workplace, equal civil rights for women, protection of rights for the disabled, preservation of immigrants' rights, and environmental justice.

And what's more, we haven't lost steam since then. Protests against the temporary travel ban, A Day Without Immigrants, A Day Without a Woman, the Tax March, and the March for Science are just a few of the protests that have been mounted in the months since — and there are many more on the way. Keep it up!

It's no secret that many organizations have received an uptick in donations since Trump was elected president, including Planned Parenthood. As Trump tries to dismantle women's rights, many people are putting their money where their mouths are and opening their wallets for the cause.

To that end, Mirage Resorts and Wynn Resorts Co-founder Elaine Wynn donated $1 million to Planned Parenthood. “As a woman, a mother, and a grandmother, I’m proud to do what I can to help protect access to reproductive health care,” the billionaire said in an email to Fortune.

Because women's rights are human rights. And because everyone deserve access to affordable, essential health care.

The first attempt to repeal the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare) — which would have been terrible for women by limiting access to birth control, removing protections for pre-existing conditions, and more — and replace it with the evil plan that is passing as a health care bill known as Trumpcare was a dud. The bill died without there even being a vote, which is a victory.

The bad news is that Trumpcare 2.0 is here, and it's worse than the first round. It's time to call your representatives again and let them know Trumpcare needs to be killed for good.

It might feel like you're yelling into a vacuum sometimes, but guess what? Your voice is making a difference. Earlier this year, a viral message started making its way across social media pointing out all the notable accomplishments made through the democratic process in the days since Trump took office.

One of the many who shared the message, Twitter user @blowticious, saw their tweets go viral; indeed, that particular incarnation of the message has been re-tweeted almost 9 million times. Others started chiming in with victories, large and small, that have taken place despite Trump being president, too. If you think what you're doing isn't working, think again. And, reach out to other to support one another. When you look at something like this viral Twitter thread, it's easy to see how much your voice matters. Onward!

Bill O'Reilly and Fox News have parted ways amid accusations of alleged sexual harassment and reports of multiple large settlements paid out to women over the years. (O'Reilly has denied the allegations, writing on his website, "Just like other prominent and controversial people, I'm vulnerable to lawsuits from individuals who want me to pay them to avoid negative publicity.") Vanity Fair reported that the cost of O'Reilly's exit was a $25 million departure package.

Although, as Bustle's Sarah Friedman pointed out, in many ways, O'Reilly's departure is not a feminist victory, the following is worth noting: Despite having the highest rated show in cable news — one that brought in billions for the network (which really says something frightening about our county and culture) — that show is no longer on the air. I still think that's a win in the fight against rape culture.

The organizers who led the Women's March also devised the 10 Actions in 100 Days campaign that provides The Resistance with tangible tasks designed to defeat Trump. Suggestions include writing postcards to representatives, Women for Syria, and more.

The best thing about this is that you can repeat the 10 actions as often as necessary. So, any time you're feeling stuck, refer back to 10 Actions in 100 Days to get yourself back on track.

The uncertainty, and absurdity, of life under the Trump administration is inspiring some artists to join the conversation in new ways. In a guerilla-style art installation appropriately named "Wax That Ass," Allison Bouganim is using butts to spark a dialogue about sexual harassment, a topic that has been near constant during the Trump campaign and presidency. Bouganim's statues are designed to confront unwanted sexual attention in typical spaces where women feel most vulnerable.

"I'm using my voice as an artist to make pieces that allow other women's voices to be heard," Bouganim told Bustle earlier this year. "I say 'heard' instead of 'told' because often times women share their stories of harassment, and assault, and [they] often aren't listened to, or [are] accused of lying. That is especially true when talking about the 'justice system.' ... My sculptures are a vessel for women's stories to be not only told, but to finally be heard."

The Fearless Girl Statue, which appeared opposite Wall Street's Charging Bull on the eve of International Women's Day, is becoming an icon for feminism. At her feet sits a plaque, reading, “Know the power of women in leadership. SHE makes a difference.”

"This is a piece of work all women of any age, shape, color or creed can relate to," Fearless Girl Statue artist Kristen Visbal said in a statement. "A work which reminds us today’s working woman is here to stay and has taken her place in the nation’s financial district."

While Samantha Bee's show Full Frontal actually debuted in 2016, in the Trump era, the show's popularity has skyrocketed. According The Hollywood Reporter, Full Frontal reaches 4.3 million viewers an episode.

Bee, a Canadian who became an American citizen in 2014, "has emerged as one of Trump's most insightful critics. ... Her research-dense yet profanity-laced monologues — she calls it 'evidence-based comedy' — have become viral hits and even occasionally manage to shame political hacks into doing the right thing," THR reports. To whit: A segment about the backlog of rape kits in Georgia led to the passage of a bill requiring DNA testing on all rape kits. Now that's real change.

Actor Anne Hathaway recently opened up about a taboo subject — internalized misogyny. It's hard to admit that you may have not only internalized misogyny, but also helped to enforce it. Hathaway told ABC News that internalized misogyny affected the way she interacted with female directors in the past, citing the specific example of filming the 2011 drama One Day, directed by Lone Scherfig.

"I am to this day scared that the reason I didn’t trust her the way I trust some of the other directors I work with is because she’s a woman,” Hathaway said on the Huffington Post. “I hope people understand that it’s hard to admit.”

Hathaway opening up about her struggles to acknowledge, and try to move beyond, her bias is commendable.

When Roxane Gay realized she was going to be published on the imprint of the same publisher that recently signed former senior editor for Breitbart News Milo Yiannopoulos to a six-figure book deal, she took action.

"I can't in good conscience let them publish it while they also publish Milo," Gay told BuzzFeed News in January. "So I told my agent over the weekend to pull the project."

What Gay did is the very definition of integrity. Additionally, NPR reported that Gay said, "I was supposed to turn the book in this month and I kept thinking about how egregious it is to give someone like Milo a platform for his blunt, inelegant hate and provocation," Gay said. "I just couldn't bring myself to turn the book in."

The Yiannopoulos book deal was dropped in February, but for Gay, the damage had been done.

There is nothing wrong with little boys playing with dolls, and American Girl agrees. They debuted their new boy doll, named Logan Everett, in February, which is a positive step in letting boys decide for themselves what they want to play with.

"Just as girls are less inclined to want race cars or science toys when all of the children in the advertisements are boys, categorizing dolls as 'girls’ toys' makes parents less inclined to buy them as gifts for their sons," Courtney Cooperman said in the Stanford Daily News. "When toys that foster caring capabilities are less accessible to boys, we reinforce the societal perception that boys are less nurturing. These damaging stereotypes that perpetuate outdated gender roles have consequences beyond family life."

This feminist victory can be seen as a small step in treating children as people instead of generic outdated gender norms.

Despite being silenced by Mitch McConnell earlier this year, Elizabeth Warren continues to persist, and champion women's rights at every turn. Her recently released book This Fight Is Our Fight: The Battle to Save America's Middle Class is a powerful narrative about narrative of economic inequality in this country.

"Are we just going to let Donald Trump and these Republicans in Washington just totally turn our government over to those with money and power?" Warren asks on NPR. "The rich and the powerful have been running our government for about 35 years now, and they have really made it work great for those at the top — for everyone else, not so much so. What I argue in this book is it is time for the rest of us to fight back, all of us, and that we can do it, and we can make our voices heard."

Warren is calling everyone to join her in the fight to take back America, because nevertheless, she persists.