The Palestinian Youth Movement is crowdfunding costs to help bring people from as far away as Kitchener-Waterloo, Hamilton, Mississauga, Toronto, as well as Quebec City and Montreal, to participate in the 1 p.m. demonstration on Saturday.

“We are traveling from all across Canada to demand an immediate lifting of Israel’s 17-year long siege on Gaza,” said Palestinian Youth Movement spokesperson Yara Shoufani in a text.

“A ‘pause’ is not enough,” she added, referring to the temporary break in fighting that came into effect on Friday. “Thousands of Palestinians have been killed, Gaza’s infrastructure destroyed, and 12,000 Palestinian prisoners are held as hostages in Israeli prisons.”

Oct. 7 marked one of the bloodiest days in Israel’s history with 1,200 Israelis killed and more than 200 taken hostage by Hamas.

In the ensuing weeks, authorities in Gaza say more than 12,000 Palestinians have been killed.

Additionally, the United Nations has reported that more than 1.6 million people have been displaced due to the conflict and thousands of others remain trapped under rubble.

On average in Gaza, a child is killed and two more are injured every ten minutes during this conflict, according to the UN.

Currently, the Red Cross is facilitating the release of hostages held by Hamas and Israel. Despite the current pause in fighting, people across Canada have been preparing for a national march in solidarity with Palestine.

Jo El-Dik, who is half-Palestinian, half-German, is travelling from Kitchener-Waterloo with the Palestinian Youth Movement for tomorrow’s demonstration. “It’s really important to have a large amount of people in Canada’s capital,” the 21-year-old said in an interview.

El-Dik said being part of a large demonstration is “good for the soul.”

“It resonates more and you can feel the impact,” they said. “When you are cold, tired and exhausted, being a part of a large crowd helps you keep up your energy.”

After Hamas’ attacks on Oct. 7, El-Dik said they faced a new reckoning with their Palestinian identity and family history.

“Everything I can do from where I am now is what I have to do,” El-Dik said. “If everyone felt that way and used their feelings in this way, we could make a huge difference.”

El-Dik and others travelling to Ottawa spent part of Friday making posters and signs in preparation for Saturday’s march. When asked why it was important to get involved, El-Dik said, “It doesn’t really feel like a choice, rather something I have to do.” 

In a statement sent by email to The Capital Chill, Ottawa police said they are “working closely with our police partners and the City of Ottawa and have the necessary resources in place” for Saturday’s march. Police advised the public to monitor its social media feeds to learn more about traffic disruptions.

Advocates for improving winter mobility say disabled and aging Ottawa residents aren’t often considered in snow and ice removal policy. This inaccessibility leads to more people being unable to go outside.

The City of Ottawa Winter Maintenance Quality Standards, which turn 20 this year, prioritize roadways but there is little mention of accessibility for residents with mobility problems. The standards have been under review for years, but updates have been delayed.

Sandra Stec, a community leader in Centretown for the volunteer group Snow Moles, said the snow piled on the edges of sidewalks last winter made them unpassable.

“You couldn’t go down the street, even if you were in an emergency vehicle,” Stec said. She explained how people with mobility aids, or even strollers, would be forced to walk in the road due to sidewalk conditions.

She also said she’s seen a disparity with snow removal in residential versus suburban neighbourhoods. “They clear out the snow in Kanata far sooner than they would do here,” Stec said.

Snow Moles, a six-year-old project created by members of The Council on Aging and Age Friendly Ottawa, engages volunteers who share their winter navigation experiences with the City of Ottawa.

The council says snow and ice removal is often done haphazardly, leaving narrow crossing paths, uneven terrain and slippery conditions. Disabled and/or aging residents are left to devise their own strategies on how to keep safe.

For Jay Baldwin, a Carleton University student who uses a power chair, advocacy is a daily task in a world that doesn’t consider disabled voices. “People will ask if I ever get tired fighting for the rights of people like me,” said Baldwin, who minors in human rights and disability studies. “Do you think disabled people have an option? We can’t wake up one day and hope that other people will fight for us just as hard as we do – that just doesn’t happen,” they said.

Baldwin recounted a time in first year when they were stuck in the middle of the road because of the snow. “Four sweet angels of human beings stopped and saw that I was stuck. They had to lift my whole chair out of the snow,” Baldwin said. “This is a heavy chair. Without me in it it’s already 400 pounds.”

Uneven snow clearage on sidewalks also gives Baldwin a hard time. “I brace myself every time I go on the sidewalks for bumps. It’s hard to do that since my spine is fused,” they said. This leads to them staying indoors for most of the winter.

This has led to them forming a book club, “Disabled Babes Book Club” and a queer Facebook group “Disabled, Queer and Fabulous” for the sole purpose of “bringing people like myself and my community together,” Baldwin said.

On Carleton’s campus, a tunnel system can be a much-needed refuge from the snow. For Jessica Ursitti, it makes it easy for her to get to her classes in the winter, but off campus is a different story. Ursitti, who studies history at Carleton, uses a power chair.

Ice poses a significant challenge to Ursitti, especially since sidewalks aren’t typically cleared for it. “I can’t get around ice very much. My wheels just keep turning,” Ursitti said. “I have a lot of instances where people have to push me, which is really uncomfortable.”

Ursitti explained she needs a power chair in the wintertime since manual wheelchairs can easily get stuck. “Manual chairs are totally different, you can’t do snow at all,” said Ursitti “Slush gets stuck between the wheels on a manual chair, and then you’ll get it on your hands. It’s not doable.”

Another problem, she said, is when snow isn’t fully cleared off the sidewalk and accessibility ramps on OC Transpo buses can’t lower completely.

“I’ve had to ask people so many times to kick the snow out of the way. They do it, and they’re nice about it, but you don’t want to ask,” Ursitti said. “You just want to be able to do this stuff and not bother people — it’s annoying.”

Joel Harden, MPP for Ottawa Centre, has been fighting for a more accessible Ottawa. He said winter mobility conditions can mean “house arrest the moment we have a massive snowstorm.”

He said the ability of municipalities to raise money for city maintenance has been drastically cut because of new Ontario legislation adopted last year that waives development charges that otherwise would go to municipal funding, such as snow removal and sidewalk safety.

The City of Ottawa declined a request for comment.

The following photo sliders show what Ottawa streets look like with and without snow. To use the photo sliders, drag the white circle across the image to reveal the difference.