Hello All,
This month has been a productive and rejuvenating mix of reflection and action at CASSA. Through our Trailblazers workshops, we have engaged with youth on topics including structural racism, mental health, media literacy, bullying and other forms of violence. We have also begun to engage service providers through our Community of Practice on re-framing South Asian youth violence and look forward to much more discussion as we continue this work.
Our Annual General Meeting took place this month; sincere thanks for everyone who joined us as we reflected on our work in 2009. At the AGM, we highlighted our health equity work with a panel discussion on sexual health and mental health. A performance by a youth theatre group also illuminated the challenges young people of colour often face in accessing responsive health care. Our many supporters, members and community partners enjoyed dinner and refreshments as they caught up and discussed social justice work in our communities. Please see below for more details on past and upcoming events organized by CASSA and our members.
Over the last month, local communities’ passion to achieve social justice has been clearly shown through mobilization to reclaim space at Pride Toronto, call for Good Green Jobs at Hydro, and call for inclusive maternal healthcare and the recognition of indigenous rights at the G8/G20. I would like to thank our communities, allies and partners for your commitment and courage to work for social justice.
In Solidarity,
Anita
Anita Khanna
Executive Director (Interim)
Newcomers’ Access to Trades Taskforce – June 3rd : NATT members met at Skills for Change to discuss and debrief our last event and propose future directions for our Access to Trades work. Several new directions came from the meeting, including holding informal discussions with internationally trained tradespeople in their employment preparation classes across the GTA. If you are interested in this project, please contact Anita at anita@cassa.on.ca for more information.
Community of Practice Meeting – June 7th: The first community of practice meeting was held on June 7th at Don Montgomery ERC, Scarborough. The CASSA Community of Practice/Working Group is comprised of front-line workers from about 15 different organizations who are committed to creating a practical and useful framework to address violence prevention within the South Asian community. Current members are The Canadian Mental Health Association, East Metro Youth Services, Toronto Public Health, The East Scarborough Boys and Girls Club, The Westhill Community Services, The Metropolitan Action Committee on Violence Against Women and Children (METRAC), Tropicana Community Services, The East Scarborough Storefront, Catholic Children’s Aid Society of Toronto, Thorncliffe Neighborhood Office and the Alternative Youth Centre for Employment (AYCE). This group will meet monthly until January discussing ideas and common problems in hopes of building more knowledge and tools for South Asian youth and violence prevention. If you or your organizations are interested in joining, please visit www.cassa.on.ca/community-of-practice.
The next meeting will be held on July 6th at Don Montgomery ERC, Toronto. For more information, contact Auvniet at auvniet@cassa.on.ca or 416-932-1359 extn 16.
Trailblazers United: South Asian Youth Leadership Series: The Leadership series kicked off on May 29th in conjunction with CASSA’s Youth Leadership Retreat, and has been on-going for the past three Saturdays at Maryvale Public Library, Toronto with workshops covering issues related to Identity and Heritage, Leadership, Knowing your rights, Healthy Relationships, Effective Communication/Project Planning, Media Literacy, Structural Racism, Youth Engagement in Social justice, Re-thinking Violence, Mental Health Issues.
We have 15 South Asian youth participating from four priority neighborhoods in Scarborough, including Crescent Town, Malvern, Scarborough Village and Eglinton East– Kennedy Park to lead violence prevention initiatives during and after summer. These initiatives which can take the form of events, forums or community projects will be created and implemented by youth within their own respective communities. Later on, these youth will also be involved in helping other youth create and deliver their own violence prevention initiatives across Toronto.
If you are between the ages of 15-24 and interested in this program, you may still apply online at www.cassa.on.ca/trailblazers, in order to take part in the actual project implementation aspect of the Trailblazers’ program, which will take part during the summer.
Health Equity Update - On June 10th, Sheela Subramaninan, the author of CASSA”s latest report “A Diagnosis for Equity: An Initial Analysis of South Asian Health Inequities in Ontario” presented to the Roundtable on Racialization and Health Research. The Toronto Public Health hosted event featured researchers and policy makers and advocates from a variety of institutions. CASSA will continue to be involved in such roundtables and discussions to highlight the barriers to health equity faced by South Asian communities. For more info on the report and our work, please email info@cassa.on.ca
CASSA AGM – June 21st : Council of Agencies Serving South Asians hosted its AGM on June 21st at Friends House, Toronto. There was a panel discussion on “Health Inequity in the South Asian Community” featuring Neelam Sharma from Across Boundaries: An Ethnoracial Mental Health Centre, Mohini Datta-Ray from the Alliance for South Asian AIDS Prevention (ASAAP) and Safiya Olivadoti of Planned Parenthood Toronto. The talk was followed by a powerful performance by Nomanzland, a youth based theatre group based in the Jane & Finch community. The program was followed by a sumptuous South Asian dinner where CASSA’s various members, partners and supported were able to make connections, catch up and reflect on our accomplishments.
Event for Internationally Educated Social Work Professionals (IESWs) – June 26th: Social Services Network (SSN) in collaboration with Internationally Educated Social Work Professionals Bridging Program, Ryerson University is organizing a meeting for employed, underemployed, and/or unemployed Internationally Educated Social Work Professionals (IESWs) living or working in York Region who are facing barriers in their search for suitable employment. This FREE event will take place on Saturday, June 26th from 11am-2pm at the Markham Civic Centre (Canada Room), 101 Town Centre Boulevard, Markham. For more information, visit www.socilaservicesnetwork.org
AYCE Events Schedule for June 2010: The Alternative Youth Centre for Employment has a number of Job search workshops lined up for the month of June. Click here to view the calendar.
JOB OPPORTUNITIES:
Senior Manager- Infrastructure & Support
Employer: United Way Toronto
Conference on “Recovery Approaches to Trauma, Mental Illness/Addiction in Racialized Communities: A Community Perspective” – June 8th: Across Boundaries presents this conference on Tuesday, June 8th from 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.at the Native Canadian Centre of Toronto, 16 Spadina Road, Toronto. The focus of the conference is to explore recovery/healing approaches used in different countries and in communities in the GTA to deal with wide scale trauma, mental illness and/or addictions. For more information and to RSVP, contact 416 787-3007 ext 224 or martha@acrossboundaries.ca. During the lunch break, launching of the book “Mental Health Race and Culture” Third Edition by Dr. Suman Fernando will take place.
Changing Face of Ontario - Access, Equity, and Governance - Professional Development Day –June 16th: Mental Health and Addiction Service Providers invite you to participate in their second Professional Development day geared towards senior management, board members, members of equity/diversity committees and interested individuals. This event will provide an opportunity for people across sectors to dialogue and engage, identify key deliverables and set out areas of accountability to the communities they serve. To register online, visit www.innovative4you.com/changingface.htm or contact Sherry Sim, Event Planner at 1-866-655-8548.
Put Food in the Budget Campaign : Put Food in the Budget campaign is sponsored by social Planning network Of Ontario with a goal to gain social assistance benefits that reflect the real costs of a healthy and dignified life for people on social assistance. For more information on this campaign and to find out the different ways by which you can show your support, visit the website http://putfoodinthebudget.ca/. An onlinesurvey “Do the Math” which compares your total estimate of monthly costs to the income of people on social assistance or working at minimum wage is also available on the site. Members of the PFIB campaign are available to do a workshop with staff, board members and community members.
You or your organization can also become a member of CASSA, if you wish to support our mission/mandate. Please visit our website www.cassa.on.ca for details on our mission, vision, values and strategic priorities. The members will receive a regular update on various happenings in the social services/social justice field in Ontario's South Asian communities.
Annual Membership fee is only $10 for individuals and $20 for organizations. Joining as a member will also keep you informed of opportunities about jobs, volunteering and community events. Click here for more information about becoming a member of CASSA and its benefits.
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