On Tuesday, after voting to elect America's first female president, hundreds of women in New York made a pilgrimage to the grave of the suffragette Susan B. Anthony. Her headstone was covered in 'I voted' stickers. 'I realised my daughters - and I have three of them - have the right to vote for a woman,' said one voter. 'It made me cry.'

It was not enough. By the early hours of Wednesday morning, the Republican Donald Trump had been named president-elect.

Many women despaired at the outcome. Exit polls suggested that 54% of them had voted for Clinton, while 53% of men chose Trump. When it came to race, the divide was even clearer: 74% of non-white voters chose Clinton, and 58% of white voters - including a majority of white women - voted Trump.

'I will be president for all Americans', Trump promised on Wednesday. And yet during his campaign, he was widely accused of encouraging racism and misogyny: he described Mexicans as 'rapists' in his very first speech; he was endorsed by white nationalistsIncluding David Duke, former leader of the Ku Klux Klan. (See below.); a recording from 2005, leaked last month, revealed him boasting about grabbing unsuspecting women by the genitalia. More than a dozen women went on to accuse him of sexual assault, although he says they are lying.

Many also worry about his policies once he takes office. Feminists decry his stance against abortionThe deliberate ending of a pregnancy. except in extreme circumstances, and his promise to stop funding the women's health service Planned ParenthoodThe service provides abortions, contraception, sexual health check-ups and cancer screenings in America.. Anti-racist campaigners fear his plan to deport 11m illegal migrants and temporarily ban Muslims from entering the country.

There is some good news for liberals: more women have been elected to the senate than ever before, including the first black woman since 1999; in Oregon, the country's first openly LGBT governor was elected; a woman came closer to the Oval Office than ever before, even if she did not make it.

No - we are entering a dark period for women and minorities, say many liberal Americans. The rights for which they have fought, over many decades, are now seriously under threat. And the message sent by a large chunk of voters was abundantly clear: rather than a woman, they would elect a man endorsed by the
Ku Klux KlanAn extremist white supremacy organisation which has existed since the 1860s..

Take heart, say others. The millions of people who believe in equality are still here, still working together to build the future they want to see. As Clinton said in her concession speech yesterday: 'never stop believing that fighting for what's right is worth it... And to all of the little girls who are watching this, you are valuable and powerful and deserving of every chance and opportunity in the world.'