North York Community House stands in support and solidarity with East Asian and South-East Asian communities in Toronto and across the country, as we continue to be outraged and heartbroken over the murder of eight people in Atlanta, including six women of Asian descent. These murders also highlight gendered and misogynistic forms of racism, and the targeting of migrant workers, massage parlour workers and sex workers. We know that anti-Asian racism, harassment, discrimination and violence have always existed in all areas of society, but these incidents have increased locally, and across Canada and the world since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. We further recognize racism directed toward South Asian and West Asian individuals, and other people of colour within our team and our communities. All of these incidents shed light on the complex and layered nature of racism.
At NYCH, we are committed to educating ourselves about the many forms of racism in order to do the work of tackling it, and dismantling systems of oppression within our organization. There is often silence around and/or the minimizing of anti-Asian racism and we commit as an organization to continue to break this silence. The senior leadership team further commits to do the work necessary to build an inclusive, equitable and safe organization for our community members, employees and volunteers.
Resources and Additional Information
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Report racist incidents at Fight Covid Racism and access information and access their resources.
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Butterfly – supports Asian and migrant sex workers
Mental health resources:
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Crisis Services Canada’s toll-free helpline provides 24-7 support at 1-833-456-4566
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Asian Mental Health Collective provides mental health support for Asian communities through various projects and have a list for therapists in the United States and Canada
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Across Boundaries provides a range mental health and addiction services and programs for racialized communities