RESIDENTS STAND UP FOR DIVERSITY
City hall rally sends message of tolerance
More than 100 people were at city hall Saturday to take part in a diversity rally originally organized to counter a call for anti-Islam rallies across the country.
Event co-organizer Kristina Larkin said the event was intended to celebrate unity and to show the community’s commitment to stand against hatred, Islamophobia, and to provide an opportunity to stand together during “tough political times.”
While the original rally never materialized, it didn’t stop Lethbridge residents from coming together to send a strong message of tolerance.
“(The other rally) didn’t seem to identify any local organizers or anything,” Larkin said. “We were a little bit worried that the existence of such an event suggesting Lethbridge wasn’t a welcoming community would even exist.
“We wanted to make sure that the call didn’t go unanswered, and that we answered with (unity).”
Aslam Piprawala, imam for the Lethbridge Muslim Association, said he was happy with the show of support for diversity in the community.
Piprawala said while everyone is entitled to their own opinions in a free society, there is a danger that arises when those opinions are backed up by aggression and violence.
“This can get get really bad,” he said. “We want to avoid that at all costs.”
He added the rise in anti-Islamic sentiment from far-right ideologies is not something he sees reflected in Lethbridge.
“I’m actually seeing a rise in support for Muslims right here in Lethbridge,” he said. “Especially after the tragic events of Quebec, and then there was a rally here at city hall. There were so many people standing in support of Muslims, not only here in Lethbridge, but throughout Canada.
“It is an amazing gesture from everyone standing with us and supporting us through all these difficult times.”
Piprawala estimates there are between 150 and 200 Muslim families in Lethbridge.
Mayor Chris Spearman said the city is supportive of efforts to be a more welcoming community and being supportive of immigrants and refugees.
“People forget we are who we are through accidents of birth,” he said. “We are blessed to be living in a city like Lethbridge, and we need to extend that same opportunity to others who are suffering hardships throughout the world.
“We’ve always benefitted in our city from people who have arrived from elsewhere.”
Larkin said the diversity rally was a good opportunity to remind people of the importance of being seen when it comes to showing support.
“In these kinds of events, numbers do matter,” she said. “It’s well and good to say we support unity, promote peace, and that we love our neighbours, but sometimes the rubber hits the road and you have to show up.
“Events like today are a good opportunity for us to gather, spend time together and get to know one another, and are sort of a practice run for times when it is really important.”
She cited the recent vigil following the Quebec mosque shooting as one of those examples.