Nearly 2,000 people gathered yesterday in the streets of Quebec City to highlight feminist struggles, 30 years after the Bread and Roses March.
From the Musée des Beaux-Arts du Québec to the National Assembly, reflecting the march that concluded there on June 4, 1995, the marchers then headed to Place George V. Under the theme “Let’s March for Bread and Roses, Again and More Than Ever,” the songs, slogans, and various speeches recalled the demands of 1995 and their relevance to the 2025 era, providing an opportunity to take stock of feminist struggles to combat poverty, of which women are the primary victims.
The June 7 event concluded a series of local marches that began on May 26 and were held in 12 regions of Quebec by 25 feminist, community, and union organizations, with the collaboration of some 30 other organizations from their networks. Approximately 1,200 people participated in these marches, covering a total of 5,550 km, in tribute to the 1995 journey.
lance Françoise David, porte-parole de l’événement et présidente de la Fédération des femmes du Québec en 1995.
“The actions organized around the 30th anniversary of the “Bread and Roses” march, and above all, the fervor with which feminist demands were carried today, bode well for the future of the movement,” emphasizes Sylvie St-Amand, president of the Fédération des femmes du Québec and co-spokesperson for the actions of Marchons pour Du pain et des roses, encore et plus que jamais.
“The 1995 march taught us that even, and perhaps especially in difficult times, we must not give up. This is precisely the time to mobilize, whatever the means!” says Françoise David, spokesperson for the event and president of the Fédération des femmes du Québec in 1995.
A symbolic rose bush was presented to the President of the National Assembly, Ms. Nathalie Roy, who indicated her wish to plant it near the monument commemorating the suffragettes’ struggle on the grounds of the National Assembly. Ms. Ariane Émond, Ms. Michèle Rouleau, Ms. Marie-José Turcotte, and Ms. Marjorie Villefranche, patrons of the 1995 march, were present, along with Ms. Arcelle Appolon, Ms. Florence-Agathe Dubé-Moreau, Ms. Melissa Mollen-Dupuis, and Ms. Adina Ungureanu, co-patrons for the 2025 actions.
The march concluded with an invitation to a large gathering organized by the Quebec Coordination of the World March of Women, in Quebec City on October 18, as part of the 6th edition of this international march, which grew out of the 1995 march.
photo by Guitté Hartog
Other articles from mtltimes.ca – totimes.ca – otttimes.ca
