Photograph of the march shared publicly by journalist Elisa Piñeiro, used with permission. Sign reads “Journalists on strike.” Some 8,000 women journalists from Spain, among them the author of this post, recently signed a manifesto called “Journalists On Strike,” which was read during the “Feminist Strike” that took place on March 8 in a dozen cities in Spain. Neither the manifesto nor the strike were initiated by a union, political party, or media source, as is often the case. For the first time, women television show hosts, radio presenters, and newscasters decided to turn off their microphones in the studio and take their voices to the streets. #LasPeriodistasParamoshttps://t.co/IyIJBV00cO — Ana Pastor (@_anapastor_) March 8, 2018 #WeWomenJournalistsStrike En la información parlamentaria trabajan muchas, muchas, muchas mujeres. Aquí algunas #LasPeriodistas paramos, también contra la #miradaparacialpic.twitter.com/Z6NmYSWwOF — Sonia Sánchez (@sanchez_sonia) March 7, 2018 Many, many women work in parliamentary information. Here are some of the #WomenJournalists on strike and standing up against discrimination. #Madrid 18:20 #LasPeriodistasParamos#WomensDay pic.twitter.com/bB1e3tTMEH — Carmela Ríos (@CarmelaRios) March 8, 2018 #Madrid 18:20 #WeWomenJournalistsStrike #WomensDay First of all, talking about change doesn't always translate into action. According to a study published in El profesional de la información, men hold three-fourths of the highest management positions and two-thirds of editorial positions. Overall, 75 percent of Spanish executives are men. Secondly, the wage gap continues to exist in the field. Eighty-five percent of Spanish journalists earning less than 1,000 euros (about 1,200 US dollars) are women. #HuelgaFeminista#8M#lasperiodistasparamospic.twitter.com/eWvis1R7DM — Elsa García de Blas (@ElsaGarciad) March 8, 2018 Tweet reads: #FeministStrike #8March #WeWomenJournalistsStrike Sign in image reads: We are the granddaughters of the women who weren't allowed to write. Beyond economic demands, another key point in the manifesto was workplace harassment, following the wave of protests like #MeToo and #TimeIsUp. Women journalists run an extra risk: In addition to harassment by superiors and colleagues, they may also be harassed by sources. Furthermore, many Spanish publications have a culture of condescension and paternalism, as well as other types of microaggressions. Hola, Paco: Recuerdas cuando me entrevistaste para trabajar (sin contrato) y me preguntaste si tenía novio para añadir que en La Razón no nos podíamos quedar embarazadas porque “esto no es como TV3”? Eso es discriminación. Hoy #lasperiodistasparamos para que no se repita. Saludos — Noelia Ramírez (@NoeliaRMontes) March 8, 2018 Francisco Marhuenda's tweet: This strike is a little petty. It's a lot of women who have never had a serious problem in their life. I've never seen a publication discriminate because you're a man or a woman. Noelia Ramírez's tweet: Hello, Paco: Remember when you interviewed me for a job (without a contract) and asked me if I had a boyfriend, then added that we couldn’t get pregnant at La Razón newspaper because “this isn't like TV3”? That’s discrimination. Today journalists are on strike so that doesn’t happen again. Cheers. Finally, the journalists demonstrated against biases in news coverage. Opinion segments and talk shows are male-centric. According to the Global Media Monitoring Project, 91 percent of experts and 82 percent of media spokespeople are men. #LasPeriodistasParamospic.twitter.com/z0GvJbrXcL — RadioQHDN (@RadioQHDN) March 8, 2018 Tweet reads: #WeWomenJournalistsStrike Sign in image reads: I can talk about politics and the economy – stop mansplaining! The movement grew thanks to a group on the instant messaging service Telegram, which, in the days before the strike, facilitated discussions about the mobilization as well as the organization of the online manifesto campaign. It also focused on vetting new members of the group itself, given that one in particular, dedicated to receiving videos, was overrun by trolls who tried (unsuccessfully) to undermine the protest. Several of the protest's organizers spoke with Global Voices about the defining characteristics of this protest and the elements that may have contributed to its success. We also asked what makes this occasion unique–why is now the time that people are getting out on the street to fight for these demands? Lucía Gómez – Lobato: Las periodistas nos hemos conseguido organizar por primera vez, con lo que ello supone de arrastre de medios de comunicación de todos los colores. La repercusión inevitable ha conseguido doblegar incluso a políticos y con todo, la sociedad entera ha reaccionado.