Together, We Rise

In my usual blog posts, I provide you with pretty pictures and witty commentary on all the great things about Victoria and UVic. I am the type of person that avoids discussing anything to do with politics and my political views. However, this topic extends past just being political. It has brought people from all around the world together to stand in solidarity and to stand up for what they believe in.

Whether or not you believe in and stand with the women’s rights rallies that took place this weekend, you cannot deny that these rallies helped to bring together people from all walks of life to discuss the future of our great planet.

These thoughts and feelings are no longer contained to America or even Canada, as displayed by the women’s rallies that took place across the globe. Each one of those people stood up against hate, sexism, oppression, racism, and discrimination in all its forms.

This is no longer a feminist fight for women’s rights, it is a fight for human rights and equality across the board. The women’s rights rallies stood together for all those who have felt unsafe in society or have been discriminated against. Historically this has included women, the LGBTQ+ community, Aboriginal peoples, people of colour, as well as the sick and disabled.

Standing in that crowd of people in Centennial Square was an amazing experience. Everyone was talking and introducing each other. People were posing for photographs with their handmade signs, smiling, chanting, and marching for something that they believed in with every fiber of their being.

There were people there who have been fighting this fight their entire lives and others were taking their first step into this fight and this march. We were all there connecting over something that shouldn’t even be an issue anymore. Older women declaring that they were fighting for human rights when they were young and they are still fighting for the same rights now. This fight should be moving forward and crossing the finish line, yet here we are with the finish line being moved further and further into the distance.

I was always told to think globally and to act locally. One voice may not seem like it would be loud enough to speak to the masses but when combined with everyone else who feels this way, that one voice becomes a raging wall of sound that demands to be heard and felt.

These women’s rallies were not just for women and women’s rights. They were for everyone who felt like their human rights were in danger and for all those who felt like their voices were overshadowed in the grand scheme of things.

One voice might not seem like enough to change anything or to make your concerns known, but in today’s society, we cannot afford to be moving backward when it comes to human rights. We should only be able to move forwards and grow as a community and a nation. Love will triumph and power through all adversity that stands in its way. Now is the time to rise up against adversity and use your one voice, be heard, dig in your heels, and be the change you want to see.

“If you don’t like what you see, why don’t you fight it. If you know there’s something wrong, why don’t you right it.” (Raise a little hell, Trooper)

If you would like more information about the women’s march here is their mission statement: https://www.womensmarch.com/mission/

DISCLAIMER: Some of the photos below contain profanity, however, this was a rally so what do you expect.