For Immediate Release: January
17, 2003
Toronto events in support
of the International and Cross- Canada Day of Action against a war on Iraq
Rallies, Marches and demonstrations
planned for Downtown Toronto
Toronto- On Saturday, January
18th, 2003, thousands of people from around the GTA will join
marches, demonstrations, rallies and events across Canada and around the
world to protest the looming war on Iraq. The Day of Action will mark the
12th anniversary of the last Gulf War and coincides with Martin Luther King
Day.
About the event, the Toronto
organizer Anthony Rapoport of the Coalition to Stop the War said, ”We’re
finding our voice. The rallies in Toronto and across the country are about
rediscovering a Canadian policy for peace.”
"The Canadian Peace movement is the strongest it's been since the Vietnam War”, said Josh Matlow, National Campaign Organizer for the Canadian Peace Alliance (CPA), “These events will bring out everyone from high school hippies to raging grannies and everyone in between, a cross section of Canadian society".
When: Saturday, January 18th, 2003, 12pm
Where: Meeting at Nathan
Phillips Square
At Nathan Phillips Square there
will be the first round of speakers. At about 1pm, there will be a
march up to Convocation Hall at the U of T campus where there will be a
rally featuring speakers, presented by Science for Peace, starting at 2:30pm.
Speakers include: Hassan Youssef, Canadian
Labour Congress, Walter Pitman, United Church of Canada, Joe Comartin, MP,
Jack Layton, Toronto city councilor, Shirley Douglas, actor, healthcare
activist, Alexa McDonough, Leader, NDP, Josh Matlow, Canadian Peace Alliance
(CPA), Howard Hampton, Leader, Ontario NDP, Jennifer Hollett, MuchMusic VJ
Last November, during the first
Cross- Canada Day of Action against a war on Iraq, Canadians from around
the nation hit the pavement in protest, including 7000 people in Toronto
and more than 15, 000 in Vancouver.
-30-
For more information contact:
Tony Rapoport,
Coalition Against the War at 416 769-0952 or Josh Matlow, CPA National Campaign
Organizer at 416 588-5555, 416 809-5674 (mobile)
A list of many of the events
and local contacts can be found at: www.acp-cpa.ca
The Canadian Peace Alliance is Canada's largest umbrella peace organization and was founded in 1985.
The Canadian
Peace Alliance/ L’Alliance Canadianne pour la Paix
427 Bloor
Street West/ 555 Rue Bloor Ouest, Toronto ON Canada M5S 1Y6
Tel: 416 588-5555 Fax: 416
588-5556 Web: www.acp-cpa.ca
Email:
josh@joshmatlow.org or cpa@web.ca