WFWP Canada Celebrates International Women’s Day
On March 24, 2018, nearly 70 women and men gathered at the Golden Lion Restaurant in Toronto for the 12th annual International Women’s Day Luncheon organized by Women’s Federation for World Peace (WFWP) Canada on the theme “Challenges and Opportunities in Achieving Gender Equality.”
WFWP Canada President Lilly Tadin opened the program with a traditional aboriginal greeting and acknowledged that the meeting was being held on unceded indigenous territory. She went on to describe the efforts of WFWP International, sharing the contents of True Mother’s 2012 message for women given encouraging women to take on the mantle of world peace, starting in their local communities and reaching out to the world.
Mrs. Yulia Tarasov, MC for the event, introduced the program which started with a poetry reading by Mrs. Arooj Aarooj, writer and radio show personality, entitled “Keep an Eye on Your Sun”.
Mrs. Zorah Zoberi followed with a poem on the role of women in the Muslim tradition, based on her experience as a playwright and poetess. She compared gender equity and gender equality, encouraging women and men to bring about an inclusive culture.
Rev. Sky Starr, a Toronto pastor and community activist, emphasized the hierarchy of needs starting with security and physiological needs which are the focus of her work in her community.
The keynote speaker, Dr. Jeannette Corbiere Lavell, Native Rights Activist, Educator and recipient of the Order of Canada, spoke of love and respect for elders, education of young people, the importance of protecting land and water and the role of mothers in promoting love in the family and in the continuity of tradition.
After the speeches, Dr. Corbiere Lavell and Rev. Sky Starr received Ambassador for Peace designations from Dr. Moonshik Kim, Regional Chairman of Family Federation North America 2, and Robert Duffy, Secretary-General of Universal Peace Federation (UPF) Canada.
Finally, a group of young Unificationist martial arts students gave a performance to the delight of the audience.