Adam's ribbon

>> Namaste fights violence with fun

by KRISTA

In 1991, a group of men responded to the Polytechnique massacre by founding an organization called the White Ribbon Campaign. Their goal, as they put it, was to "help foster a society free from violence against women."

Through fundraising and workshops in schools and communities nationwide, the group encourages men to to work with women to end men's violence. It has become the largest such effort in the world.

This year, the WRC is throwing a massive three-city blowout called Namaste, happening simultaneously in Montreal, Vancouver and Toronto. Here at home, the DJ lineup includes San Francisco's John Howard, Bobby D'Ambrosio of NYC's Def Mix, as well as locals Maüs, Mark Dillon and JoJo Flores.

Namaste is the brainchild of Bob Saloman, president of Safeguard Publicity Inc., a promotions and marketing firm. "I became involved with the WRC by providing condoms for the group's educational workshops a few years back, and they asked me if I wanted to be a board member," he says. "I thought an event like Namaste would be a good way to create more awareness about the WRC. The word 'namaste' itself means peaceful greeting, and that's what we're trying to get across."

At Metropolis, Thursday, December 3, 9pm, $20 in advance