【Love Conquest】

PARK CITY,Love Conquest Utah -- Twenty-one degree weather and a steady sprinkle of snow couldn't dampen the enthusiasm at the Sundance Film Festival on Saturday morning, where an estimated 8,000 women, men and children took to the streets of Park City for a peaceful but potent Women's March on Main.

Mary McCormack, Zoey Deutch, Jennifer Beals, Charlize Theron, and Chelsea Handler attend The March On Main hosted by Chelsea Handler on January 20, 2017 in Park City, Utah. Credit: Getty Images for Netflix

Organized by Chelsea Handler (as Mashablefirst reported), the procession was one of several hundred sister marches taking place the day after Donald Trump's inauguration, with other gatherings drawing hundreds of thousands of participants across the country and around the world.

"I just don't know how you can't get involved," Handler told Mashableof her decision to organize the event at the film festival. "I don't have a choice. This is just too scary. I've always had a big mouth, so now I have a real reason to use it."

The comedian admitted that it was heartening to see so many states and countries join together in hope of holding elected officials to account. "I think that today's show of solidarity and support is a real loud message, and we can't get complacent, we can't get lazy and say life got in the way -- thisis your life. I don't have kids, I don't have a husband. I have a talk show, and I intend to use it the right way: for good."

SEE ALSO: Virtual march helps people with disabilities join the Women's March on Washington

Many marchers were decked in pink, purple or white, donning the "pussyhats" that have become an unofficial symbol of the event. (Even celebrities like Nick Offerman got in on the act.)

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Some attendees bore signs in support of Planned Parenthood, freedom of the press and LGBTQ rights, while others decried climate change.

Chants of "our bodies, our choice" and "hands too small, can't build wall" rang out during the trek down Main, and spirits seemed high despite the chilly weather.

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable SEE ALSO: All the best protest signs from Women's Marches across America

The march stretched along the half-mile strip of Main Street, the central thoroughfare of the film festival, before looping around into a large parking lot where Handler and her celebrity cohorts held a rousing rally that reinforced the importance of unity, inclusivity and vigilance against oppression.

Speakers included civil rights activist Dolores Huerta (who is the subject of Sundance documentary Dolores), Aisha Tyler, Connie Britton, Mary McCormack, Benjamin Bratt, An Inconvenient Sequelproducer Laurie David, Jessica Williams, Maria Bello and Kimberly Peirce.

Chelsea Handler and Mary McCormack speak during The March On Main hosted by Chelsea Handler on January 20, 2017 in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Todd Williamson/Getty Images for Netflix) Credit: Getty Images for Netflix

Other celebrities spotted in the crowd during the march included Charlize Theron, Laura Dern, Kristen Stewart, Joshua Jackson, Laura Prepon, Jennifer Beals, Jurnee Smollett and John Legend.

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"If the election had gone the other way, maybe we would've grown complacent; maybe we would've thought 'we did it, we pushed through that glass ceiling,' so the groundswell that we needed before that election is happening now," Handler observed during her opening remarks.

"It's not 1917, this is 2017 -- we shouldn't have to fight for progress we've already made, but we're ready to," she added. "It's our duty to take care of the next generation and to ensure that our children have the same access to the essential services that we all have."

Two days after An Inconvenient Sequel debuted to rapturous response, David had harsh words for Trump. "On this auspicious occasion, the irony has not been lost on Vice President Al Gore, or any of us, that yesterday, we inaugurated as President of the United States the only leader in the free world who denies the science of climate change," she noted.

Williams, who stars in Jim Strouse's The Incredible Jessica James, gave a stirring speech that was equal parts poignant and hilarious.

"I come from black bodies. My ancestors were slaves. Williams is my last name but it is not my real name, it is my slave name. I am my ancestors' dream. They fought for me to be able to stand up here in the cold-ass snow, in front of a bunch of white people wearing Uggs," she said, to hearty laughs from the Ugg-wearing crowd.

"The hardest part of growing up for me was realizing that the world is not inherently fair. I grew up thinking that the civil rights movement already happened. That we already fought. But this election was a wake up call."

After the speeches, Britton and Tyler led the crowd in a rendition of the ACLU's People's Oath, before the Baltimore Leadership School for Young Women's group of Lethal Ladies dancers (who appear in Sundance documentary Step) drew the proceedings to a close with a brief but impressive demonstration of their skills ahead of their film's premiere.

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"It was just a beautiful, inspiring day. I got to hear a lot of great people talk and it's nice to be able to come together and to feel brave enough to use your voice," Handler reflected after the march. "You have to be brave and you have to be bold to get things accomplished."

As far as the Netflix host is concerned, the march was just the beginning of what she has planned to help raise awareness and stand up against discrimination.

"I'm in touch with a lot of people about a lot of different things. I'd like to do some sort of format like a speaking tour ... like a town hall type thing, to really get young people involved. And go to colleges on the weekends when I'm not working and actually have an opportunity to get people registered and to educate them about how to get registered, how to get involved, to find out who your congressperson is -- that stuff works," she told Mashable. "We've got to move forward, we can't move backwards. You can't undo things that have been fought for that long ago -- it's inhumane."

She also plans to use her eponymous Netflix series to continue the difficult conversations that Trump's election has prompted.

"I'm going to have people on with different opinions. I'm going to bring people on who are not like me and find a common ground, because we have to bridge the gap," she admitted.

"There are a lot of people who were ignored for the last eight years that I realize how bad it was, and I apologize for that. And I want to move forward with a message of inclusiveness, and talk to people that you're not comfortable talking to."

And for anyone who may be still be feeling defeated, or who couldn't make it to one of the marches, Handler has a message: "You're not alone," she promised. "If you can't get up for yourself, I'll get up for you."

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