Cambridge rallies for Ukraine (8 photos)

About 20 local Ukrainians showed up at a rally at Cambridge City Hall on Saturday to rally for their homeland. 

Also in attendance was Brian May, Cambridge’s MP and Surekha Shenoy, Cambridge Liberal candidate in June's provincial election.. 

St. Mary’s Catholic Ukrainian Church collected donations earlier in the day.

“We are all Ukrainian today,” said May as he addressed the crowd. “Our message has been steadfast and consistent. We support Ukrainians, support their sovereignty and right now we're doing everything we can to support their fight, not just for their lives, but their right to exist.”

The rally was organized by Maria Antoniv, director of Fourth Wave, an international organization of Ukrainian communities. She had just started the Cambridge chapter when the war in Ukraine broke out. She had originally asked for five volunteers at St. Mary's Catholic Ukrainian Church, instead 75 showed up. 

“The Ukrainian community is unlike any other, the sense of pride we have is unmatched,” said Antoniv. 

Antoniv has her whole family trapped in Ukraine. She said her mother is in her late 80s and cannot leave the house even if she wanted to. Her mother can’t even get to a bomb shelter and has accepted what ever happens, happens.

“One reason to hold these rallies is not just to get support to send to Ukraine, but to also have people realize that for them this is not just some movie they’re watching, they cannot turn off the screen and ignore it,” said Antoniv. 

Liberal candidate for MPP Shenoy has also been very active for the Ukrainian community. She was at the church helping volunteers package and sort through medical supplies and canned foods. 

May also added that Cambridge will be housing Ukrainian refugees as they start to come into Canada. Even members of his own family are wanting to help. 

“People are calling me directly saying, ‘how can we help? We have an extra bed, we have an extra granny flat, that we can have somebody come in and stay.’ Even people in my own family are saying, ‘We can take some refugees. How can we help?’

Fourth Wave Cambridge continues to look for support from the community and will keep holding rallies and donation drives until this conflict in Ukraine is over.