The Canadian government announced in Gatineau, Québec yesterday that it plans to spend over $20 million on 92 anti-racism projects throughout the country.
Of that, $1.9 million will go toward 10 projects within Alberta.
Generally speaking, projects funded through the federal Anti-Racism Action Program must align with at least 1 of the following 3 themes:
- Reduce barriers to hiring, leadership training, and workplace skills training
- Promote interventions for youth
- Encourage positive relationships between communities and the criminal justice system
- Promote participation and reduce barriers in community sport, arts and culture
The federal programme also prioritizes projects that target online hate and promote digital literacy.
The largest contribution among the 10 Alberta project will be $288,800 for Umoja Community Mosaic, a Calgary-based drop-in soccer club. Umoja will use the money for their Communities United through Sports, Arts & Volunteerism programme, to improve social participation of racialized communities—particularly black and Muslim communities and recent immigrants—by increasing their sense of belonging and civic engagement.
Here’s a list of all 10 projects:
| Organization | Programme | Funding |
|---|---|---|
| Umoja Community Mosaic | Communities United through Sports, Arts & Volunteerism | $288,800 |
| Action Dignity Society | People’s coalition to advance fairness and equity | $245,675 |
| Riel Institute for Education and Learning | Enhancing Indigenous Employment Opportunities | $236,095 |
| Action for Healthy Communities Society of Edmonton | Participating in Arts, Sports and Society | $233,430 |
| Edmonton Centre for Race and Culture | Mobilizing Anti-Racism Knowledge | $222,020 |
| Council for the Advancement of African Canadians in Alberta | Anti-Black Racism Community Capacity and Institutional Relationship Building | $221,500 |
| Alliance Jeunesse-Famille de l’Alberta Society | Agissons Ensemble — Let’s Act Together | $173,850 |
| The ACCT Foundation | Beyond good workers and model minorities | $105,000 |
| Human Services Professionals Association | Fair Representation of Racial Minority Leaders in Canadian Higher Education | $70,946 |
| United Way of Calgary and Area | Elders’ Knowledge Circle | $68,750 |
In June, the Alberta government announced plans to provide funding for 24 projects in the province through the Multiculturalism, Indigenous and Inclusion Grant.
The announcement was confusing regarding how much money would be provided, claiming up to $25,000 per project—which would come to $600,000—but then saying just over $400,000 in total.
The province didn’t include a list of the 24 recipients. It did however list 3 of the projects:
- Hinton Adult Learning Society: research barriers for new Canadians in Hinton and provide anti-discrimination training to local organizations
- Girls Incorporated of Northern Alberta Society: create learning opportunities between Indigenous and non-Indigenous girls through storytelling and teaching
- Deen Strong Foundation: develop an online counselling platform to improve access to mental health resources for marginalized groups
According to The Grove Examiner, another recipient was CHANGE Health Alberta, for a project that supports Indigenous education training for partners across the suburban Edmonton area to help reduce barriers Indigenous people face when accessing health services, recreation opportunities, and education support.
Likewise, Strathmore Now reported that the Strathmore Municipal Library will receive an unspecified amount of funding to build a better understanding of Indigenous culture, strengthen intercultural relationships in our community, and work towards reconciliation.
Finally, in a LinkedIn post, Liza Choi, the interim associate dean of Mount Royal University’s faculty of health, community, and education, said that the English-as-an-Additional-Language Nursing Student Support Group, which she founded 12 years ago, was also a recipient of the provincial grant. The group will be able to extend English-as-an-additional-language support to students in other departments at MRU.
