By Lidia Abraha
Sexual Assault Support Survivor Line (SASSL) held a poster making event in preparation for the annual Women’s March on Saturday. Students gathered with excitement to take their work to the streets, along with hundreds of people in Toronto.
“It’s a great way to bring out the community,” said Margaux Perrin, a first-year professional communication student. “It’s a way for all women that want to be part of it, even if you don’t have a group of friends to go with it gives you an opportunity to go with people.”
The Women’s March started three years ago after Donald Trump was elected president of the United States. As a result, women around the world marched in protest of his presidency.
Photo: Elana Emer 
Photo: Elana Emer 
Photo: Elana Emer
“It’s really important because it gives women an opportunity to see how they can be involved in making a change around them and how they can get involved with activism and using their voice,” said Sydney Bothwell, one of the coordinators at SASSL who co-organized the event.
Sydney really enjoyed her first Women’s March last year, and now she wants to encourage students to participate in the march.
“The energy is indescribable, it’s really positive, inspiring, it makes you feel motivated to keep doing this work,” said Sydney. “Despite the fact we might feel like we’re not always getting somewhere. It’s inspiring to keep going.”
SASSL also hosted a brunch event before the Women’s March, so that the Ryerson community could be represented in the march.
“It can be really intimidating to go by yourself,” said Sydney. “Whether their friends are busy, or they don’t really have that support within their network or their community, they can come here and get that support from us, and we can, as a group, go together.”
This event will be followed by Consent Action Week starting Jan. 21. SASSL will be hosting events that touch on topics of consent in partnership with the Consent Comes First Office at Ryerson.
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