By Aaron Mahoney (@Mahones93 on Twitter)

March On Lethbridge rally and Living Library events set for this weekend

Jan 17, 2018 | 11:00 AM

LETHBRIDGE – A year ago, members from March On across the United States and Canada, including in Lethbridge, marched for women’s rights as human rights and this weekend they continue that march forward.

A rally is set for 11 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 20, at 4 St. and 6 Ave. S.

After that, there’s an event called the Lethbridge Living Library that runs from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Multicultural Centre.

March On Canada is a Canada-wide, grassroots network of people organizing events for January 2018. It was formed in February 2017 by a coalition of organizers, responsible for leading 120,000 marchers in the Women’s March in cities and towns across Canada.

Local March On member Krysty Munns says this weekend is the one-year anniversary of the March On Washington, and added Lethbridge had a pretty good turnout for the local march.

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“This event is more of a call to action, kind of the next step in the process. There’s lots of people that want to do things and get involved, but maybe don’t know where to start. We’re inviting about 15 different grass roots organizations here in Lethbridge to come together in one space. That way individuals from the community can browse through the different groups to see what they’re all about,” Munns said, adding people can figure out how to get involved with something that’s specific to them.

The Lethbridge Living Library will include various organizations and speakers from within the community who serve the principles of human rights, social justice, equality, and compassion.

“We have some workshops set up, a speaker who will be talking about bystander intervention, a collaborative art project reflecting the lived experiences of refugees in Lethbridge and the Kairos blanket exercise. That’s a very important exercise on the path to reconciliation,” Munns said.

The two events set for Saturday will dovetail off one another, but Munns says the Living Library event is going to be more interactive.

She also added the main purpose behind this weekend’s events is to keep momentum moving in the right direction on issues of the day.

“There was a lot of energy after the march last year, and then it kind of fizzled for a bit because people didn’t know where to direct that energy,” she continued. “We’re hoping that an event like this will help people get more involved.”

Organizers are also billing the event as diverse, one that will cover not only women’s issues but a lot of other issues as well.

“Women’s issues may be different for everyone right, so we’re trying to keep it as diverse and inclusive as we can.”

The event is free of charge for participants, and children are welcome.

There’s no set number organizers are hoping for, but based on last year they are expecting a solid turnout.

“When things get going at 11 a.m. with the rally, we’re hopeful that the people who show up for that will come check us out at the Multicultural Centre afterwards,” Munns said.

It all comes back to the idea of moving forward.

“There has been some progression, but there’s always room for more change. This event is designed to be a call to action for change,” Munns stated.