It is gray and cloudy. I’m alone but I’m not lonely at the start of my protest. I’m thinking about two incredibly courageous women who I met in New York during my trip to the UN’s Commission on the Status of Women conference last week: Suzuyo from Japan and Nelly from Honduras.

I should explain that I was invited to participate on a panel entitled “Confronting Military Violence: Challenging Militarized Security” organized by the Canadian Voice of Women as part of a side event to the UN’s annual women’s conference. The theme for this year’s conference is “The Elimination of Violence Against Women.” On the panel, I spoke about the research that I had done on sexual harassment and assault in the Canadian military.

After the panel, during the Q&A period, Suzuyo stood up and told us about the 50-year struggle to close down the U.S. military base in Okinawa, Japan. Her organization is the Okinawa Women Act Against Military Violence. She described the ongoing sexual assaults by U.S. servicemen against Japanese women. She asked “How do we close down U.S. military bases and reduce the military worldwide?” Her question is one we must all answer – how do we demilitarize and stop this violence? Later in the lobby, she came up to me and handed me a 42-page document detailing all the crimes, mostly rapes and murders of Japanese women, committed by the U.S. military personnel in Okinawa since 1945. Her persistence and pursuit of justice for the women of Japan is so inspiring. We shared our hopes for a world without militarism, hugged, and took a picture together.

The other woman who I can’t forget meeting in NY is Nelly. She is with Dreamweavers and Women in Resistance, two social justice organizations in Honduras. She was one of the presenters on a panel entitled “Violence, Economics and War.” Through a translator, Nelly talked about the deterioration of human rights in Honduras since the military coup in 2009 that installed the right-wing government of Porfirio Lobo Sosa. She described the prevalence of armed soldiers on the streets and the increase of weapons and violence across the country. Nelly listed prominent journalists and activists who have been killed over the past four years, because of their criticism of the Lobo government. She said it was transnational corporations seeking natural resources that are colluding with the undemocratic national government against the impoverished Honduran people. She also described the U.S. military base in Honduras that has been built on the pretext of the war on drugs. However, Nelly argued that drugs, corruption, and violence have risen despite the base. The U.S. has not brought stability and security to the country, exactly the opposite. She said there is a resource war now in Honduras and it is women and the earth who are bearing the burden of this war.

As Nelly spoke, I cried and couldn’t stop. I thought about the Nova Scotia Environmental Network interns (Jackie, Leigh, Sophia, & Becky) who I had working in Tegucigalpa, the capital on Honduras, many years ago with the courageous Dr. Juan Almendares of COHAPAZ. The interns reported back to me about the pollution caused by Canadian mining companies, the militarism, the poverty, and the brave resilience and resistance of the Honduran people as things were slowly improving in their country. Then the coup in 2009, the internship program ended, and we lost contact with our Honduran allies. Now, Nelly has just shared how things are far worse in Honduras. I know the Canadian government and Canadian mining companies are complicit in this horrible suffering of the Honduran people and it breaks my heart.

Today, I’m standing in solidarity with my sisters Suzuyo from Japan and Nelly from Honduras who are working diligently for peace and non-violence.

Kelly and Sharon later joined me in my protest today and because of their enthusiasm, we got 23 honks and 17 waves. Only 1 finger and 4 head shakes.