Moncton prepares to 'Take Back the Night' on Tuesday with march against online sexual harassment

Coming together in solidarity and strength, residents of Moncton, N.B., will march as part of a worldwide initiative to "Take Back the Night" on Tuesday.

With the power of numbers, signs and a loud message, the annual event is held to help build awareness and protest gender-based violence.

Alicia Mazerolle, the associate director for YWCA Moncton, says this year’s theme is, “Not on our streets and not on our screens.”

“As we’ve seen an increase in social media use and digital access, sexual violence continues on in the regular forms that we see in terms of street harassment, harassment in the workplace, trafficking coercion and things like that, but it’s also online now,” she said.

“It’s more prevalent online than it’s ever been and that, of course, affects everybody, everywhere so, of course, it’s still just as important to talk about it now as it was 10 years ago and 60 years ago when the folks first created Take Back the Night.”

Several community organizations are involved in this year’s walk, including Centre de prevention de la violence, Regroupement feministe du Noveau-Brunswick, Feecum, Centre Boreal, YWCA Moncton, Crossroads for Women, and South East Secual Assault Centre.

“We need the whole community to make this work and if we’re going to form a commitment against it, we need everybody to do so,” said Mazerolle.

The event kicks off Tuesday at 6 p.m. with sign making, following by guest speakers at 6:30 p.m. with the march starting at 7 p.m.