Archives: Grants (page 11)

San Lorenzo Latin American Community Centre will provide in-person workshops and host a live, weekly call-in radio show through their CRTC-licensed radio station (CHHA 1610 AM) to create interactive and engaging community spaces for newcomers and immigrants from Latin American countries living in the Toronto and Hamilton areas. This project will help to inform and connect individuals with legal education, specifically about labour rights and laws in Ontario and where to find support and information in the community.

The Sault Ste. Marie Indian Friendship Centre, in partnership with Dr. Jane Dickson (Carleton University), will pilot a Gladue bail program for Indigenous people in Sault Ste. Marie. A first of its kind in Ontario, the Centre will hire a Gladue Bail Report (GBR) Support Worker to provide support to and oversight of persons released on bail, and to develop and deliver training on the preparation of GBRs and info sessions for defense bar, Crowns, and courts. This initiative will fill a gap in Gladue services as only a modest percentage of courts receive Gladue reports at sentencing.

Scarborough Community Legal Services’ Communities Building Justice Together program will build and develop community-led resources with East Scarborough’s Black and Indigenous communities by providing support navigating the legal system and by providing a platform for community development around access to justice issues.

Society's Bella Coola Legal Advocacy Program will adapt its British Columbia-specific Legal Information for Indigenous People booklet into a nationally relevant version. Additions will include sections about status, prisons, borders, and criminal and federal child protection laws. The booklet will be distributed throughout Canada to Indigenous-led and Indigenous-serving organizations, as well as to legal aid organizations. The online version will be updated as required through Clicklaw. The objective of the project is to increase knowledge of the legal issues that affect Indigenous people, including those living on and off reserve communities.

The Women's Centre of Halton will expand its legal services by piloting a family court advocacy program for survivors of intimate partner violence in Halton. In consultation with legal experts, Family Court Advocates will offer case management support and public legal information. The objective of this project is to improve survivors’ knowledge of the legal system and their legal rights and options and to provide access to timely support in navigating the family court system.

TTCriders will develop Know Your Transit Rights resources to provide legal information to members of the public, community agencies, and legal clinics on the Wheel-Trans application and appeals process and on the fare enforcement complaints process. Partners include volunteer lawyers who will provide pro bono legal research and oversight. This initiative will primarily benefit disabled, low-income, and racialized transit users who are impacted by transit enforcement interactions and changes to paratransit. The objective of the project is to increase awareness of legal rights on public transit and of transit legal and administrative processes.

University of Toronto’s African, Caribbean, Black Family Group Conferencing project addresses the negative experiences of African, Caribbean, and Black (ACB) families and youth in the child welfare system, primarily in the Greater Toronto Area, by providing culturally responsive, restorative alternatives to traditional group conferencing. The objective of the project is to model and develop the Ujima Mediation Training for Families and Youth, a researched-based, Black-focused mediator training model for mediators working with low-income Black families involved in family court. This project will expand operations into new forms of mediation, broadening the work in the child welfare sector and into other areas where ACB families can benefit from mediation, particularly family law.

The University of Windsor, Faculty of Law will update its Civil Procedure and Practice in Ontario guide, test its usability with audiences, and expand its reach so it is available to more people, including public library and Steps to Justice users, and those who use Google or Wikipedia in search of legal knowledge. The objective of the project is to provide self-represented litigants with a free, accessible and plain-language online resource on Ontario civil procedure (published on CanLII).

Through this project, Whistleblowing Canada Research Society will survey Ontario lawyers to identify those who take whistleblowing cases and offer pro bono consultations and develop a directory for the public. Educational videos and materials will also be developed to inform and educate the general public – potential whistleblowers – about their rights.

This 2-year partnership will enable the Black Opportunity Fund to provide grants to Black-led, Black-serving nonprofits with impactful initiatives helping Black communities better understand and navigate the criminal justice system.