Thousands have attended Australia's Walk Together marches, which took place across the country to condemn racism. Australians marched in over 20 cities across the country in opposition to racism and support of refugee rights on Saturday. Peter Boyle from Australia's Socialist Alliance attended the march in Sydney, where he told teleSUR English the event drew a “broad” cross section of society. “Religious and political leaders, including Greens leader Christine Milne marched,” he stated, estimating around a thousand people turned out in Australia's largest city. “The walk together marches … were an important expression of dissent against the current racist hate campaign against the Muslim minority in this country today,” Boyle stated. He continued by explaining Muslims communities have been hard hit by a wave of Islamophobia in recent months, “especially women.” “Powerful interests have a strong motive to fuel this (hate) campaign as an adjunct to Australia and other Western countries' resurgent imperial military interventions in the Middle East,” he stated. Some of the marchers dressed up as superheroes, while others carried placards reading, “stop racism and bigotry.” The march in Sydney was organized by Walk Together, which has stated on its website, “We believe an Australia where prejudice is unpopular and cruelty hurts at the polls, is possible. An Australia that recognizes the equality and dignity of all people – no matter who you are, where you’re from or how you arrived here. As the marches took place, across the country mosques held open days in a related event. Non-Muslims were encouraged to visit local mosques to learn about Islamic culture. The open day for mosques is an annual event organized by the Lebanese Muslim Association. “This is an opportunity to share tea with family and friends, and hear directly from Muslims about our lives in an open conversation,” Sheik Dr Ayman Malas told public broadcaster ABC from Sydney. However, Malas explained visitors aren't just welcome on the annual open day. “This is a public place that anyone is welcome to come to at any time,” he said.
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