FORT KENT, Maine — On Saturday, Jan. 21, organizers will hold a women’s march from 9 to 10:15 a.m. at the Century Movie Theater in Fort Kent, on Hall Street. Everyone is invited to participate in this family-friendly event.
The initial meeting with informal speakers will occur inside; organizers are then planning an optional march at 10:15, depending on weather and participant interest.
Organizer Rory Collings has served her community on the town budget committee and recreation board and has been a Girl Scout leader and Cub Scout den mother. She was also appointed to the Maine Commission for Women in 1984 and has been involved in leadership roles in the school in which she has taught over 24 years.
She said her work history has led her to be an advocate for funding public education, and that, as the mother of an LGBT daughter and with family members who have brown skin, she felt a personal connection to concerns that are rising in the wake of the recent election.
“People in my own family have reasons to feel disenfranchised and afraid and I just felt like I wanted to let them know there are people out there who are ready to listen and help and support,” Collings said.
Organizer Julie Daigle said her participation rose from a gradual awareness through her public health employment: that it is, in fact, possible to create change, with persistence and participation from others, and that it’s worth fighting for the things you believe in.
She said a gradual understanding that women’s rights are human rights also motivated her to participate in facilitating the event.
FMI, contact Daigle orCollings at moxieplum@yahoo.com.
