Activists gathered in the Fargo-Moorhead area, along with other areas of the country including St. Paul, Minnesota and Washington D.C. to call on politicians and policy makers to enact policies based upon scientific truth and knowledge, rather than ignoring the facts.

The March for Science mission statement is to call for science “that upholds the common good and for political leaders and policy makers to enact evidence based policies in the public interest.”

“Our leaders must not misrepresent, silence, skew or ignore science, or impede scientists from conducting research or sharing their work,” March for Science’s website said. “Public agencies tasked with conducting science and applying science to decision making, resource management and operational needs must be given the freedom to pursue their science missions with integrity. They must not be subject to political interference or arbitrary defunding.”

F-M activists gathered on the campus mall of Minnesota State University Moorhead, proceeding to take their march to the Veterans’ Bridge on Main Street.

Activists’ signs included sayings such as “Grab ‘Em by the Data,” “Got Plague? Me neither. Thank science” and “Try reading instead of tweeting.”

In Washington D.C., notable persons who spoke at the march include Derek Mueller, host and creator of the YouTube channel Veritasium, Questlove, a musician from Jimmy Fallon’s in-house band on The Tonight Show, and Bill Nye, the science guy.

“Science is inherently political,” Mueller told the D.C. audience. He said when toxins and pollutants are scientifically discovered which can harm humans, policy must be made to fix it.

Questlove said alternative facts and refusing to believe science works against science and “we need to work for science.”

“Our lawmakers must know and accept that science serves everyone of us,” Nye said. “With an informed optimistic view of the future, together we can — dare I say it — save the world.”