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It's a tough question, but a fair one - and we asked it today. Jules Vasquez reports:

Jules Vasquez reporting
It was an orange wave crashing into the Caribbean blue on Marine Parade. Up close though, there was a lot less orange and a lot more white - as in school uniform white. Schools came from all over the country,

Some with their marching bands. It made for a nice vibe on the street - but, we wondered was their presence optional, or ornamental? Lead organizer Kim Barrow embraced it as a cross section of community support:

Kim Simplis Barrow - Special Envoy for Women and Children
"It's evident today with the amount of people, the amount of schools that came out today that we are united, that we are determined to combat what it is that's crimpling our country. The violence has got to stop and it is up to each one of us to make a difference. So today I am proud. I am standing with each woman and child, boy that is out here today."

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"A critic would say but it is indeed a lot of students but its only students and its mandatory involvement. I counted 5 hundred consensual like adults who you could say woke up and put on the orange shirt. It's mostly students and we know students are mandatory involvement. Is that an indication that there is less public appetite to engage in this 20,000-strong march?"

Kim Simplis Barrow - Special Envoy for Women and Children
"I don't know how to answer that. Whoever is out here is marching for a purpose, for a cause. If people want to come out that is great. If they don't then..."

But those who did come out in Orange, were really feeling it, marching and stepping with messages that had real time resonance.

And so, while the VIP's like the Prime Minister's wife and the Speaker of the House beside her had something to clap about - is it the sound of one hand clapping?

In the current climate - one wonders - is the message and the symbolism of today event relevant to the serious times we're living in:

Kim Simplis Barrow - Special Envoy for Women and Children
"People are losing hope - we all have to rise up and do. We can't just sit back and just expect a group, one small group of people to do. We all make a difference. We all have to report crimes. We know who the criminals are, report them. Go to the police, help the police out and again the police need to do their job. They need to gather evidence. They need to present a case to the DPP. The DPP needs to do her job. The judges need to do their job. It's not just one person. It's all of us, it's a community."

Inside the Marion Jones at the rally the focus was on a message from young girls.

Kim Simplis Barrow - Special Envoy for Women and Children
"It is no secret that women and girls have been deprived of basic human rights for thousands of years beyond and not being able to vote, get a loan, own a business, or take up leadership positions worldwide. Women have had to deal with issues such as limited access to education and health care, gender base violence, stigma and discrimination, sexual harassment and the list goes on."

And beyond the close listening, and the courteous ovation from the VIP section, we saw real women here - younger and older and, real feeling - sisterhood, you might say.

So no, it wasn't 20 thousand - not even close - but there were sparks of something true - and promise of something more:

Kim Simplis Barrow
"Today I say sisters if you want something go for it. If you are willing to put in the work, no dream is out of reach. You have limitless potential, freedom of choice and there is no one formula for how we as woman should live our lives."

The Rally was organized under the theme: "Nurturing the Next Generation" #PressforProgress.

The event was organized by Kim Barrow's Office, in partnership with the National Women's Commission, the Women's Department, UNICEF Belize, The US Embassy and the Ministry of Human Development, Social Transformation and Poverty Alleviation.