MaryBe McMillan, the first woman elected President of the North Carolina State AFL-CIO and a member of the WILL Empower Advisory Council, delivered this poem at the “Women’s Rally on Raleigh” on January 20, 2018 in Raleigh, North Carolina.

#TimesUp, enough, no more
Inequality makes us poor
Earning cents to the man’s dollar
Means our paycheck is smaller
Same job, different wage
You’d think things would change
Still we work just as hard as the guy
Yet it’s less we’re able to buy
Get nickel and dimed
While the bills fall behind
We demand fair and equal pay
Here, now, without delay

#TimesUp, enough, no more
An epidemic we cannot ignore
Treating a woman like a sex object
Instead of with dignity and respect
We don’t know them all by name
But the story is always the same
The boss who makes a pass
Acts like it’s okay to harass
Well, we’ve got a message for you
Can’t hide in this world of #MeToo
Truth revealed in a rally cry
Thousands of voices amplify

#TimesUp, enough, no more
We’ve fought this too many times before
Discrimination in the workplace is over and done
A new day has begun
See the glass ceiling shatter
Hear a thousand shards clatter
Don’t call me baby: it’s CEO, director, president
Change is coming—that’s evident
All across this land
Women are taking a stand
Such powerful words spoken
A nation’s conscience awoken

#TimesUp, enough, no more
So what are we waiting for?
Let’s demonstrate, agitate
Teach, preach
Resist, persist,
Lead, succeed
Fight back
Let’s fight back
In the workplace, the capitol, the street
Because united, there will be no defeat
Listen, can’t you hear it? The tick tock
Of that clock
Sexism, racism, homophobia
#TimesUp, never again
Together we win, justice will win
It’s over–the end

This poem originally appeared on the North Carolina State AFL-CIO website on January 26, 2018.