We have been contacted by members of the African diplomatic community in Ottawa to invite you to participate in a Lions Club 'Parade of Nations' on Saturday, July 5th, at 10:00 am. This will be during the Lions Club International Annual Convention in Toronto.
The parade will take place on University Avenue in Toronto - from Queen's Park, south to Queen Street. With 14,000 Lions members currently registered to attend the convention, at least 10 000 people are expected to march in the parade.
They are looking for volunteers to participate. If the marchers are of high-school age, they will be able to offer them community service hours. There will also be a small token of appreciation for their service from Lion Jean. Lion Jean Mathanga is the incoming District Governor for Lions District 412 - Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Botswana. We understand the outgoing president, Charles Zvobgo, will also attend the convention.
If you and\or your kids are interested in this international parade, please contact Lion Duane Malcolm, President of the Tillsonburg Lions Club at duanemalcolm@hotmail.com as soon as possible.
We encourage you to join us as we continue to work with other organisations in Canada for the benefit of our community.
As you may have seen recently on TV, newspapers and online media, PJ Makuto was viciously assaulted by four assailants in a racially motivated hate crime at Sutton District High School. He is the 17 year old son of Charles and Desiree Makuto.
As a community, we cannot afford to stand by and watch this atrocity at the sidelines and carry on with business as usual. Our children are under attack. Many social justice organisations are rallying around the family to offer support and help the family to fight for justice. We are now calling upon you, our Zimbabwe Canadian community, to join these efforts.
Here are concrete ways in which you can help:
Attend the court case: The court case will begin next week, May 15th, at the Newmarket Couthouse, 50 Eagle Street W, L3Y 6B1905-853-4801. We will send you the exact time next week.
Call the School Superintendent for Georgina, Trustees, Board officials and Politicians
Contact social-justice and equity-seeking groups for their support
Spread the Word Get the word out by forwarding this email to your contacts. Share and spread the story through Social media
Contribute Financially; the family faces huge legal bills as they seek to get justice for their son and possibly lodge a Human Rights complaint. Please visit the fundraising page set up by the Vaughan African Canadian Association here
Your Zimbabwe Canadian Support Group is also actively submitting letters of complaint and seeking to engage the authorities in order to express our outrage at this violent act.
If you wish to contact the family directly or wish to help in other ways, you may also call Mr Charles Makuto at 705-437-2677.
We will send further updates on this case as it evolves but please act on this, we have to do something for the safety and future of our children and our community.
