A walk and rally coinciding with the United Nations International Day of Peace will be taking place in Williams Lake on Monday at noon.
Margaret Anne Enders, Coordinator of the Canadian Mental Health Association Women’s Spirituality Circle and Multiculturalism Program says the Walk for Harmony and Rally for Refugees is to bring awareness within the community and to bring people together.
“To celebrate diversity and just to draw attention to the amazing diversity that we have in the community. Just to the idea that if we all open our hearts and minds and become more accepting, our community would be an even more fantastic place to live.”
Enders says they look at what’s happening in the community and choose a different focus each year, and that the refugee crisis is weighing heavily on people’s hearts and minds this year.
“The refugee crisis has actually been happening for quite a number of years, but this year there’s a lot of concern and awareness and movement about it,” she says.
“I think a lot of people are wanting to show their support for refugees; they don’t know what to do. They want to help out in some way and it’s sort of unclear which actions would have the most benefits.”
The Walk and Rally take place at Spirit Square and will be followed by a light lunch with information pamphlets being available.
There are approximately 20 million refugees around the world displaced by war, violence, and conflict.
Last year’s Walk for Harmony had focused on Orange Shirt Day.