“Until all of us have made it, none of us have made it.”
~ Rosemary Brown
LEADERSHIP MESSAGE

Dear YWCA Toronto Community,

We are so excited to share with you the digital version of our 2022 Annual Report: Hope in Uncertain Times. This report shares the brave stories of four program participants and highlights our responses during another challenging year of the pandemic. As I read through this report I feel a sense of pride and gratitude – I am proud of the incredible work of our organization and so grateful for the community of donors, funders, sponsors, partners, staff, volunteers and e-newsletter subscribers who make it all possible.
 
Yesterday, April 24th was World YWCA Day which is celebrated by over 100 YWCA’s worldwide. This year’s theme was Every Safe Space Has a Story, which highlighted the power of YWCAs and how they create safer spaces while building community and advancing gender equity.

In 1873, YWCA Toronto began as small group of local volunteers who came together out of concern for the safety of young women. Fast forward 150 years and we are now the city’s largest multi-service organization serving women, girls and gender diverse people. As part of the larger YWCA movement we have worked tenaciously to break down barriers that hold women, girls and gender diverse individuals back from achieving equity and safety. Happy belated World YWCA Day to all those who have contributed to the movement! Together, we help our communities find hope, become stronger and build brighter futures. 

Best, 

Sami Pritchard
Interim Director of Advocacy and Communications
YWCA Toronto
Photo | Courtesy of Global News
ADVOCACY CORNER
Equal Pay Day

April 4th was Equal Pay Day. As members of the Ontario Equal Pay Coalition, we were proud to support this year’s campaign, Privatization Hurts Women.

That morning, Interim Director of Advocacy and Communications, Sami Pritchard, spoke at a press conference at Queen’s Park to say “no” to privatization and urge the provincial government to protect public services and close the gender pay gap.

Through an op-ed in the Toronto Star, Sami shared "why privatization won’t close the gender pay gap".

“Privatization widens the wage gap, exploits workplace rights, and reinforces poverty — especially for women, racialized, and immigrant workers.”

You can read the full op-ed here.
PROGRAM UPDATE
Supportive Programming for Teen Mothers

Did you know that YWCA Toronto has a Teen Mothers’ program that offers a free in-person drop-in support program for new mothers ages 14 to 22?

Through the program, we offer opportunities to build positive parenting skills and access to resources that support mothers on their parenting journey. We also provide child-centred activities for children that enhance development, counselling and career guidance. To learn more, click here.

This month, we launched a new program –The Baby Brunch – which offers fun activities including music, fingerplay, art, sensory play and much more! To find out more, contact Melanie at MBrennan@ywcatoronto.org.
PHILANTHROPY HIGHLIGHT
LIMITED NUMBER OF EARLY BIRD TICKETS AVAILABLE

Join us for the 42nd YWCA Toronto Women of Distinction Awards Gala to honour the achievements of seven remarkable women and raise vital funds for over 13,000 women, girls and gender diverse people in the GTA.

Purchase an early bird ticket or table or donate now to help women and girls flee violence, secure housing, find jobs and thrive.
 
For information contact:
Jacqueline Willis, Event & Stewardship Officer
Photo | Courtesy of Toronto Foundation and Environics Institute for Survey Research
COMMUNITY RESOURCES
Everyday Racism: Experiences of Discrimination in Toronto

Last month, a first-of-its-kind report was released by Toronto Foundation and Environics Institute for Survey Research which found that “roughly 76 per cent of Black Torontonians experience racial discrimination at least a few times a month.”

A research brief derived from the report highlights the report’s findings on discrimination in more depth. The brief, Everyday Racism: Experiences of discrimination in Toronto, is based on conversations with more than 4,000 Torontonians about
their experiences with discrimination.

You can read the full report here. 
Photo | Courtesy of WomanACT
Survivors’ Experiences in the Toronto Private Rental Market
 
In Toronto, gender-based violence is a common cause of homelessness among women and gender diverse people.

Recently, WomanACT shared a new report, Successful Tenancies: Exploring Survivors’ Experiences in the Private Rental Market in Toronto, which examines how best to support survivors as successful renters. This report contains community-based research and findings surrounding access to private rental housing while also sharing experiences and unique challenges faced by survivors, such as hidden homelessness, discrimination from landlords, and income insecurity.

Read the report here. 
Edgy
Calling on the Provincial Government to Reinstate Healthcare Coverage for Uninsured People in Ontario

YWCA Toronto, as part of the YWCA Ontario Coalition, is calling on the provincial government to reinstate healthcare coverage for uninsured people in Ontario. As part of this advocacy we sent a letter to Premier Doug Ford and MPP Sylvia Jones, Minister of Health. In this letter we made it clear, without access to healthcare, the health and well-being of our communities will suffer, with potentially fatal consequences. Our neighbours, our friends, our co-workers and our community members deserve equal access to healthcare.

Photo | Courtesy of Justice for Workers
YWCA Toronto at the United Nations, 67th session on the Commission on the Status of Women

Sami Pritchard, Interim Director of Advocacy & Communications, represented YWCA Toronto as a member of YWCA Canada's delegation at the United Nations 67th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW). The CSW plays a critical role in promoting and protecting women’s rights, influencing global standards on gender equity and the empowerment of women, and documenting the experiences of women’s lives around the world.
 
Sami shared her experiences at CSW67 with us in our most recent blog post, read it here. 
LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
YWCA Toronto operates on the traditional territory of the Huron-Wendat and Petun First Nations, the Seneca, and the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation. We are grateful to work on this territory as we strive to build a more equitable and just city for women, girls, and gender diverse people. For a full land acknowledgment, please visit our website.