YWCA Toronto

Join us this week for the "Ask a Trans Person Anything," event we are hosting in partnership with the Trans Canada Tour! 🏳️‍⚧️

Do you have questions about transgender issues? Victoria Bucholtz and Fae Johnstone, two prominent transgender activists, want to chat with you! Whether you are a parent, an ally, or someone who is not sure where they stand on trans issues, we want to talk! 🏳️‍🌈

📅When: June 24, 5:00-7:00 PM
📍Where: YWCA Toronto, 87 Elm Street
💙RSVP: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/ask-a-trans-person-anything-toronto-tickets-1988787535054?aff=oddtdtcreator

Today on the Summer Solstice, is National Indigenous Peoples Day! We celebrate the rich cultural heritage, resilience, contributions and diversity of First Nations, Inuit and Métis people across Turtle Island 🧡

This week, our Elm Centre hosted a National Indigenous Peoples Day celebration that brought residents together to take part in a Two Row Wampum activity, enjoy a performance from a Prairie Chicken Dancer, and share a delicious meal including a wild meat tasting, berry salad, Three Sisters salad, bannock, and cedar and Chaga medicinal teas.

Continue learning and celebrating Indigenous Peoples and Indigenous history by checking out the Toronto Public Library Indigenous Initiatives: https://tpl.ca/using-the-library/services/indigenous-initiatives/

On World Refugee Day, YWCA Toronto extends our solidarity to all those seeking safety 💙

We acknowledge how immigration policies impact safety, autonomy, and well-being, particularly for women, gender diverse individuals, Black and racialized individuals, the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, and survivors of violence.

Canada is a settler-colonial state, and aside from the Indigenous Peoples of Turtle Island, we were all once newcomers to this land. Canada is strengthened by newcomers, and we welcome refugees as neighbours, community members, colleagues, friends, and family.

YWCA Toronto continues to call for the repeal of Bill C-12, Strengthening Canada’s Immigration System and Borders Act, which will exacerbate the vulnerabilities already facing women and gender diverse asylum seekers. We also continue to call on Prime Minister Mark Carney to reconsider the implementation of co-payments under the Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP), which will harm newcomer health and lengthen stays in shelters and transitional housing.

As conflict and displacement intensify across the globe, and amidst a cost-of-living crisis here at home, we must respond with compassion, care, and a deep commitment to community.

📢We call on all levels of government to reject the harmful and untrue narratives that newcomers, whether refugees or migrants, are responsible for systemic issues. Canada must uphold principles of international law and human rights, and its proclaimed proud history as a place of refuge that provides protection to and helps resettle those most in need.

Now more than ever, we must anchor ourselves in humanity, compassion, and respect.

To learn more about government calls to action, read:

✍🏾Our letter to the Senate on Bill C-12:https://www.ywcatoronto.org/Assets/YWCA/Documents/Advocacy/Letters/The%20Gendered%20Impacts%20of%20Bill%20C12%20-%20Letter%20from%20YWCA%20Toronto.pdf

✍🏾Our letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney on the IFHP:https://www.ywcatoronto.org/Assets/YWCA/Documents/Advocacy/Letters/Letter%20to%20Fed%20Govt%20re%20IFH%20refugee%20co-payments.pdf

🏳️‍⚧️✨Join us on Wednesday to talk trans! We are excited to host "Ask a Trans Person Anything," in partnership with the Trans Canada Tour!

Do you have questions about transgender issues? Victoria Bucholtz and Fae Johnstone, two prominent transgender activists, want to chat with you! Whether you are a parent, an ally, or someone who is not sure where they stand on trans issues, we want to talk! 🏳️‍🌈

📍Where: YWCA Toronto, 87 Elm Street
📅When: June 24, 5:00-7:00 PM

💙Space is limited! RSVP now: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/ask-a-trans-person-anything-toronto-tickets-1988787535054?aff=oddtdtcreator

💼✨Are you looking for work? YWCA Toronto Employment Centres are here to support you on your path to employment!

Our Employment Centres offer FREE employment support for women, youth, and gender diverse individuals including:
✔️ Connections to employers
✔️ Resume and cover letter support
✔️ Interview preparation
✔️ One-on-one career counselling
✔️ Better Jobs Ontario support
✔️ Free access to computers, internet, printers, and more

✨ Book an appointment and start getting support today!

Choose the location nearest you:
📍 3090 Kingston Rd., Suite 300, Scarborough
📞 416-269-0090

📍 2425 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 303, Scarborough
📞 416-264-5788

Learn more about YWCA Toronto Employment Centres: https://www.ywcatoronto.org/ourprograms/employmentandtraining/ineedajob/ywca-toronto-employment-centres

YWCA Toronto Employment Centres YWCA Toronto helps women, men, youth, and gender diverse individuals find jobs. YWCA Toronto's Employment Centres offer: Integrated Employment Services Employment resources and coaching to find sustainable employment in Ontario:

📣 Swipe to learn about YWCA Toronto’s advocacy work in May! ➡️

Some key moments from our advocacy work in May 2026 include:

🗣️ Sami Pritchard, Director of Advocacy and Communications, presented to the City of Toronto's Board of Health on the Adverse Childhood Experiences Report with recommendations to limit these experiences including preventing violence and instability in the lives of caregivers.

Read the full presentation: https://www.ywcatoronto.org/takeaction/deputations/preventable-predictable-and-compounding-childhood-adversity-in-our-systems

🧑🏾‍⚖️We sent a letter to the Attorney General of Ontario expressing our concern about the verdict in R. v. Sloka and urging Ontario’s Crown Appeal and Review Branch to conduct a full review of the decision, including giving serious consideration to appeal. The Crown has since officially filed an appeal, as well as two new charges against Sloka.

Read the letter:https://www.ywcatoronto.org/Assets/YWCA/Documents/Advocacy/Letters/Letter%20of%20Concern%20-%20R%20v%20Sloka%20-%20YWCA%20Toronto.pdf

🏡As part of the Shelter and Support Board Advocacy Coalition (SSBAC) we shared a letter with the City of Toronto’s Planning and Housing Committee to support the shelter project at 3838 Bloor St West, Etobicoke, for women experiencing homelessness. In response to this support, City Council approved the new 60-bed facility, now set to open in 2028.

Read the letter:https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2026/ph/comm/communicationfile-211080.pdf

💬 Deepa Mattoo, CEO, alongside representatives from YWCA Canada, met with Member of Parliament Leslie Church to discuss the key challenges and opportunities shaping our work in service delivery and advocacy for women, girls and gender diverse individuals.

👩🏽‍💻 Stay connected with our advocacy by subscribing to The Feminist Edge, our monthly e newsletter featuring key updates, learning resources, and tools to help you take action on feminist issues.

Subscribe to The Feminist Edge: https://bit.ly/3VKrZnM

📢💜Our CEO, Deepa Mattoo, wrote a powerful article highlighting how Canada’s justice system can harm survivors of sexual assault instead of helping them.

Many survivors face doubt, fear, and harsh treatment in court—for racialized, immigrant, and non status survivors, the risks are even greater. Reporting an assault can put their safety, housing, or immigration status in danger.

The article highlights the need to rebuild the justice system so survivors are protected through automatic safety measures, real transparency, and alternative paths to justice that focus on healing.

Deepa shares, “It is time to move past a system of institutional betrayal and build a justice system that heals rather than harms.”

⚖️Read the full article: https://www.law360.ca/ca/criminal/articles/2489060

This article was originally published by Law360 Canada (www.law360.ca) a division of LexisNexis Canada.

✨💙 We extend a heartfelt thank you to Fair Trade Jewellery Co. for their decade of extraordinary partnership and craftsmanship in support of YWCA Toronto’s Distinction Awards!

Since 2016, FTJCo has generously designed and donated the beautiful award pins that are gifted to the YWCA Toronto Distinction Award recipients—changemakers in our city who are extraordinary champions of gender equity, social justice, and inclusion. This year marked a special milestone—the 10th anniversary of our collaboration with FTJCo and the unveiling of a stunning new pin design.

Their artistry helps us recognize women and gender diverse individuals whose leadership and vision shape a more equitable future for women, girls, and gender diverse people in our communities, and we are deeply grateful to FTJCo for their commitment to uplifting and celebrating these trailblazers.

Swipe to see the 2026 Distinction Awards recipients receiving their pin ➡️

🌟 Learn more about : www.distinctionawards.ca

🌟 💙 Get to know YWCA Toronto’s NEW CEO, Deepa Mattoo!

In our latest blog post, Deepa Mattoo, shares her vision for the future, the urgent issues facing women and gender diverse individuals in Toronto, what drives her leadership and much more.

✨ Learn more by reading our new blog post ‘In conversation with Deepa Mattoo, YWCA Toronto’s NEW Chief Executive Officer’: https://www.ywcatoronto.org/blog/In-conversation-with-Deepa-Mattoo-YWCA-Torontos-NEW-Chief-Executive-Officer