It’s time for women (and men) in Timmins to Take Back the Night.

Women, men and families are getting ready to march for women’s rights tonight at the Timmins Take Back the Night March. Starting at 355 Wilson Ave. (the parking lot of the Timmins and Area Women in Crisis Centre), everyone is welcome to join a rally with key note speaker Julie Lalonde, an educator in violence prevention from Ottawa.

Then the march begins! People can hold picket signs and be as loud as they want as people chant and march their way up Pine Street, then back down Algonquin, finally ending up back at 355 Wilson Ave.

Jackie Kay, Second Stage Housing and Volunteer Coordinator at Timmins and Area Women in Crisis, says tonight’s march is for a cause that concerns all women in the city.

“We’re marching for women to feel comfortable walking at night alone,” she said. “It’s kind of the ultimate premise, is that women can feel safe and confident, walking down the streets at night.”

Word of the march is getting out, perhaps more so this year than ever before. Kay says people are starting to become more educated on women’s issues, and she hopes that shows with the crowd tonight.

“More people are starting to understand the need for this,” she said, “and in particular, more men are starting to come out. So they’re starting to support women in their right to feel safe in being an ally for us.”

Kay is proudly wearing a t-shirt that reads #TimesUp, a message that has become more and more popular with the #MeToo movement. Kay says the messages behind these new hashtags is clear.

“It’s ultimately about the time [being] up for women to feel uncomfortable,” she said, “for women to feel oppressed, for women to not have the courage or strength to walk outside alone. Or get a job, or anything really. Just to not be oppressed.

“The time is up. And it’s time for women now to take their rightful place and shine.”

Kay says there’s usually a crowd of about 200 people for Take Back the Night. She’s hoping to see more than that tonight, and she’s hoping the crowd gets loud.

“We literally just march as a group,” she said. “We blast our music, we honk our horns. We let the city of Timmins know that we’re here and this is what we’re marching for.”

Kay hopes to see men and women come out tonight; she says having more men join the march is really important to the cause.

“Men joining specifically means that these men are allying with us and they’re educated. And they’re deciding to support this cause. So that’s super cool.”

The march starts with a rally outside the Timmins and Area Women in Crisis building at 355 Wilson Avenue. Speaking as the keynote speaker is Julie Lalonde, an Educator in Violence Prevention in Ottawa.

Lalonde tells media there is a new group in Canada measuring the rates of femicide (homicide of a woman or girl) across the country. Lalonde says, since January 1st, 2018, a total of 106 women have been killed across Canada.  She says, even with all the media attention the women’s movement has had in the past year, there is still a lot of work to be done.

“For me, it’s just really important to drive home that people are, rightfully, feeling super optimistic about MeToo and about the changes and the fact that we’re talking about this more openly,” Lalonde said, “but we’re obviously not doing enough when so many women and girls are loosing their lives to male violence. So, for me, it’s reminding people that we need to keep coming out. Like, not to get apathetic. Not to feel like we won. […] We still have a lot of work to do.”

There is something parents, guardians and adults can do to help this movement progress. After Ontario recently went back on its sex-education curriculum, it’s important that students and kids learn about consent among men and women. Lalonde says having that conversation with your kids about consent and healthy relationships is important to shape their attitudes towards women and equality. She says boys and men are especially exposed to lots of negative influences online.

“We know, especially for young men, there’s no shortage of ways that they can learn really toxic, misogynistic things online if no one is filling that gap,” she said. “So for me, it’s about having those proactive conversations at home as early as possible. And just to not let it go. To just keep talking about it as much as possible.”

Lalonde, who now lives in Ottawa, is from northern Ontario. Growing up in Sturgeon and Sudbury, she says she finds women from small towns organizing events like this inspiring.

“There’s something really incredible about small town women organizing, making sure they have a voice in a community where it’s small to begin with.”

Lalonde says even with the progress Timmins has made in the MeToo movement, there are still areas for improvement.

“I look and see there are very few women sitting on your city council. There’s no women running for mayor. So, women’s voices are not being heard in the same way as they would be in a bigger city.”

Lalonde says, even if there is more work to be done, she’s always inspired to come to small communities and see the city come together for women’s rights.

“I always get really excited to come up north,” she said. “It’s usually a small group of women that are doing so much work in the community. And for them to have an opportunity to shine is always really exciting.”