Signs sent powerful messages during protests across the nation in 2017

Protests were prominent in 2017 with people fighting for issues they felt strongly about, including women's rights and Trump's presidency.

Their signs provided a simple, yet powerful way for protesters to convey their thoughts and views. They were bright-colored and bold-lettered. They were one-word phrases and fully formed thoughts. They resisted. They supported. They defended. They told the stories of people of all races, religions, creeds, sexual orientations, political views and genders.

The year began with one of the most widely attended protests in history. In January, five million people on all seven continents descended upon various locations to participate in the Women's March. The march was held one day after President Donald Trump took office as a show of solidarity for women's rights. Signs at marches in Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Sydney, London and Tokyo all had similar messages about feminism, reproductive rights and resistance.

The march was in stark contrast to the protests that took place on inauguration day. Protestors clashed with police, threw rocks and set a limousine on fire as they demonstrated against Trump being sworn into office as the 45th president of the United States.

In August, white nationalist marchers clashed with counter-protesters at a rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. The event took a deadly turn when investigators say James Fields Jr. plowed his car into the crowd. Heather Heyer was killed and more than a dozen others were injured. Two months later white nationalist Richard Spencer held an event at the University of Florida. Spencer appeared to be greatly outnumbered with counter protestors both inside and outside holding signs that denounced Nazis and the KKK.

A number of decisions made by President Trump and his administration resulted in massive protests over the past 12 months, including the decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, his proposed ban on transgender people serving in the military and his travel ban that impacted people from several Muslim-majority countries.

Click through the slideshow above to see signs from many of the other protests held across the nation this past year.