91-year-old to march with her daughters to call on Trump to respect women's rights

A 91-year-old Cape Breton woman plans to march with her daughters on Saturday to call for the Trump administration to respect women's rights.

Marguerite Allenof Little Bras d'Or, N.S., says she'llbe at the Sydney Civic Centrewhere the rally is scheduled for 1 p.m. It's one of many rallies across Canada in support of the main March on Washington on Saturday.

Allen is from Cape Bretonbut spent most of her adult life in Rhode Island, where she raised her two daughters, Cindy and Shelly, who now live in Big Bras d'Or.

• Saint John women wear 'pussy hats' for women's march against Trump

She doesn't like Donald Trump, who was inaugurated Friday as the 45th president of the United States.

"He's frightening... and I think he is a liar."

Wearing Pussyhats

Allen and her two daughters will be wearing theirtheir hand-knitPussyhats, which have become the symbol of the march.

The Pussyhat Project, launched in late November, encourages activists to wear the hats at Saturday's marches, even providingknitting instructions for the pink headgear. They are in response toTrump's lewd comments about women caught on tape during a 2005 "Access Hollywood" interview.

Cindy Allen says her mother was their role model.

"I think she was the original feminist, we just didn't know it when we were growing up," she said.

"We grew up in middle America in the '50sand '60sand our mother worked full-time. She was the only one in the neighbourhood that did that."

The daughters moved to Cape Breton in the 1980s. Marguerite followed, returning home after decades in the U.S.

Attacks on human rights

But thefeisty seniorretains a keen interest in American politics. And she doesn't pull punches when it comes toTrump.

"He will be fine for those who have a great deal of money, he'll go for that, but I can't see him doing much for the average man," she said.

"I would say he has already infringed on many women's rights."

Shelly said she would love to goto Washington D.C. for the big march, but demonstrating at home is also important.

"We want to make sure that people know that they are supported people from the women's movement, people from the gay and lesbian community, disabled people, Muslims."

Cindy called Trump's right-wing policies "a cancer that is spreading this way" and Canadians have to be mindful and speak up against the erosion of human rights.