About 200 Islanders marched through downtown Charlottetown in support of the Women’s March on Washington, which itself was a response to Trump’s inauguration on Friday.
Organizer Susan Hartley said the event began when she posted an invitation on Facebook for anyone who wanted to discuss the Washington march to meet her at Receiver Coffee Co. on Richmond Street.
“Then this happened,” said Hartley during an interview with The Guardian. “It evolved from a conversation and gathering into a march.
“I know there’s a lot of expressed concern and Islanders are usually pretty quiet so I’m pleased people are willing to speak up.”
Hartley said her message is that “everybody’s rights are important.”
“There is concern and fear people are professing that the rights of minority groups and marginalized groups under the new administration in the states is going to have global effects.”
About 200 Islanders marched through downtown Charlottetown in support of the Women’s March on Washington, which itself was a response to Trump’s inauguration on Friday.
Organizer Susan Hartley said the event began when she posted an invitation on Facebook for anyone who wanted to discuss the Washington march to meet her at Receiver Coffee Co. on Richmond Street.
“Then this happened,” said Hartley during an interview with The Guardian. “It evolved from a conversation and gathering into a march.
“I know there’s a lot of expressed concern and Islanders are usually pretty quiet so I’m pleased people are willing to speak up.”
Hartley said her message is that “everybody’s rights are important.”
“There is concern and fear people are professing that the rights of minority groups and marginalized groups under the new administration in the states is going to have global effects.”
Hundreds of thousands protested at Washington on Saturday, while many other major cities across the U.S., and even in other countries, held similar rallies.
The Charlottetown rally saw some marchers wearing pink hats, a symbol being used in the Washington marches, while others chanted “women take the power.”
Hartley said she hopes Trump listens to the criticism, although she feels that is unlikely.
“Right now the indication is he won’t because he’s already deleted anything in reference to climate change, women’s rights and gay rights,” said Hartley, referencing pages that were seemingly removed from the White House website on Friday. “I hope we send enough of a voice across the world to make, if not him, his administration stop excluding people.”
Although the majority of the Obama administration’s content was removed from whitehouse.gov as part of Trump’s transition into office, it is now available archived at obamawhitehouse.gov, concerns have been expressed over how Trump will treat those issues and immigration policies as president.
Stratford resident Tim Rose carried a sign reading “resist the pushback, women’s rights are human rights.”
Rose said he held the sign because, unlike the U.S., Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms protects individuals from being discriminated against based on gender.
“Our values and a lot of the things women have now in Canada are because people fought for them,” said Rose. “And we may have to keep fighting for them.”
Rose said he is still in shock that Trump won the election.
“I have nightmares about Trump,” said Rose, who was not impressed with the new president’s inauguration speech. “He didn’t give the impression that he wanted to unite all the different groups in America. He basically played to his base, but maybe his base doesn’t include people are LGBTQ, women and minorities.”
