Who gets to pee in this city? That’s the question Kate Fane will be reflecting on this weekend 鈥 on a walking tour.
Fane a long-time volunteer with Jane鈥檚 Walk, will lead a tour focused on public washroom access 鈥 or the lack thereof 鈥 and how it disproportionately affects marginalized communities like homeless people and queer folks.
Her walk is one of 150 free tours taking place across the city from May 2 to 4 led by dozens of volunteers as part of the annual Jane鈥檚 Walk festival, a global urban movement inspired by the late Jane Jacobs. The urban activist and writer believed the best way to understand a city was to walk through it.
Launched in 2007, a year after Jacobs鈥 death, the festival now spans neighbourhoods across 海角社区官网鈥 from Scarborough to North York to Etobicoke 鈥 and cities around the world, including Palma, Munich, New York and Melbourne.
This year鈥檚 theme, Walk With Us, is meant to encapsulate community and friendship. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not speaking to people behind a podium,鈥 said Jane鈥檚 Walk organizer Mehedi Khan. 鈥淲e鈥檙e speaking to people side by side, on the street.
“Oftentimes when we view the streets, we have (a parochial) view of our neighbourhoods, our stories, our commitments, the community activism that takes place,” he added. “We all live our separate lives, and we鈥檙e doing our separate things.” The walks aim to break down those “siloes” and offer participants a chance to see the city through someone else鈥檚 lens.
Another walk happening this weekend, History of Eglinton West鈥檚 Little Jamaica, explores the cultural heritage of the neighbourhood and how it’s been affected by LRT development. Others include a tour of Little Manilla in the Bathurst Street and Wilson Avenue area, and An East Chinatown Tour: Exploring Secret Tales of Migration, Culture, and Community Resilience.
At the heart of Jane鈥檚 Walk is Jacobs鈥 simple belief: people need to get out, walk the city, and observe how communities are being shaped. The movement she inspired encourages people to 鈥渙bserve, reflect, share, question, and re-imagine the places in which they live, work and play; giving agency to and championing the voices of everyday people,鈥 according to the Jane鈥檚 Walk website.
Fane, a self-professed nerd who loves getting involved in “city stuff,” has been volunteering with the festival since 2014. She returns every year for what she calls “an incredibly empowering experience” 鈥 being surrounded by people who share her values and concerns.
There is power in community, she says. “When you come together, you can identify really creative approaches that wouldn’t necessarily come to you if you were sitting alone in your room.”
The walks, she added, also invite people to share personal stories. “They really champion the fact that everyone has an experience with how they move through their environment.鈥
A handful of digital walks are also available online for those unable to attend in person.
For full listings, walk descriptions, and accessibility details, visit the Jane鈥檚 Walk website at聽.
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