Members hope to honor last year’s peace rally.

LEWISTON – Ten days of events aimed at celebrating community, diversity and justice are scheduled to begin Saturday with a 10-hour jam at the Multipurpose Center.

People will drum, paint, read, sing, dance and even play rugby. That’s just the start.

The event has been organized by the Many and One Coalition, which put together a January 2003 peace rally in Lewiston attended by 3,000 people. It was a show of opposition to white supremacists who met on the other side of town.

“We’re trying to honor the memory of last year’s (peace) rally,” said Kate Brennan, a volunteer for Many and One.

As many as 200 volunteers are planning to perform or help run one of 20 different events planned for the 10 days, beginning Saturday and ending on Jan. 19, Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

The opening day activities begin at noon. The afternoon will feature demonstrations, readings and crafts. At night, Denny Breau is to host performers including Referendum, Boreal Tordu, Somali poet Jawab and the Mama Miriama Band.

The entire day’s events, like most of the following nine days, will be free. Meanwhile, parking for the opening events at the Multi-purpose Center will also be free. The Central Maine Civic Center, located across the street, has opened its lot for attendees.

“We really don’t know how many people might show up,” said Tracy Gregoire, events coordinator for the coalition. “It could be 500, 1,000 or even 2,000.”

People from several Native American tribes have shown particular interest, as have people who support one band or another.

“We’ve received phone calls and e-mails from people who live five and 10 hours away,” Gregoire said.

For more details on the events, times and directions, see the Many and One Web site, www.manyandone.org.