The Protecting People Committee’s main mission is to organize in solidarity with communities under threat. Since April, YI has been involved with Pride (marching in the parade and staffing an “About Us” table, below) as well as Juneteenth. Twelve people volunteered their time to staff the table at the event.
Steering Committee member Leslie Van Guse said that during the committee’s first couple of meetings, they listed marginalized communities that might benefit from our support.
“Juneteenth and Pride were the first two events we felt we could dig into (by) offering our support and getting our name/faces out in the community as Yakima Indivisible,” she said. “We staffed the Juneteenth table with pairs of sitters, so we had a total of 10 people sign up. For the Pride Parade, we had about 40 people behind our banner on a cold, rainy Saturday so, not a bad turnout.”
Van Guse also spoke at the event after being asked to do so by former Steering Chair Ellen Bovarnick. “I was really glad I was asked to participate,” Van Guse said. “As the mother of a transgender granddaughter, Pride is a group I have a personal tie to.”
Want to be on a committee? Email us at contact@yakima-indivisible.org
