Justice, Now More than Ever, a weekend event to promote social justice and diversity awareness, begins today.

Rally organizers, including students who camped out in the HUB-Robeson Center in the spring, members of the Penn State Black Caucus and other supporters, estimate that more than 400 people from outside the Penn State community will attend.

Rally events Friday 9 a.m. to noon Registration Noon to 1:30 p.m. Workshop session 1 2 to 3:30 p.m. Workshop session 2 4 to 5:30 p.m. Workshop session 3 8:15 p.m. -1 a.m. General Assembly Saturday 9:30 to 11 a.m. Workshop session 4 Noon March and Rally speakers 8 to 10 p.m. Town Hall Meeting 10:30 p.m. to 1 a.m. Entertainment Sunday 9:15 to 10:15 a.m. Workshop session 5 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. Closing

All of the weekend's events are set to occur in the HUB-Robeson Center. Three sessions of workshops also are scheduled, each lasting 90 minutes.

The workshops are designed to educate and promote discussion on topics ranging from homophobia and religious discrimination to racism.

Facilitators for the workshops include professors, students and visitors to Penn State.

"Professors were encouraged to spread the word about the rally and to have the students go and attend the workshops," said David Davis, rally chairman.

Following the workshops, there will be a communal dinner of donated and discounted pizza. Free breakfast will be provided on Saturday and Sunday as well.

Organizers encourage rally attendees to register early so they have an accurate count of attendance. They are asking students and others coming for the weekend to give a $10 donation upon arrival, but "no one will be turned away for lack of funds," according to the rally Web site.

On Saturday, there will be one morning session of workshops followed by a break for lunch. At noon, the march and rally, including guest speakers such as Rev. Jesse Jackson, will begin.

Marchers will meet on the HUB lawn for opening remarks then begin walking down Shortlidge Road to College Avenue. The planned route will go from College Avenue to Burrowes Road and down Pollock Road, ending at Old Main lawn.

The degree to which traffic through campus and downtown State College will be affected depends on the number of people marching and police decisions to close roads.

"It's not always necessary to close a road to do a demonstration or march," said Sgt. Duane Musser of State College Police Department. Musser said police have permission from the state to close the road if needed, but as of last night, no decision on closing had been made.

On Sunday, a final workshop session will be held after breakfast, and a closing with keynote speakers will run until noon.

There was concern that some groups would be unable to attend the rally because so many airports are closed. Groups had registered to come from the New York and Washington, D.C. areas, both of which were hit by hijacked airplanes in Tuesday's attack. Davis said the groups still plan to attend.

"We have a group coming from UCLA," he said, explaining that the group leader had contacted organizers. "She said that she was still coming, that she was going to find a way to fly out."

Organizers think it is still important to hold the rally, especially after Tuesday's terrorist attack.

"In light of everything we think that our rally speaks exactly to everything that's going on globally," Davis said.

At Tuesday night's regularly scheduled meeting, organizers discussed the events and decided the rally is still needed even in light of the tragic events.

"Now more than ever it is the time for us to come together," said a statement posted on the rally Web site.