Anti-Racism Guide: Act: Organizations

In October 2015, President Obama’s White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs), in partnership with the Sikh Coalition and the Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment, launched Act To Change, a national public awareness campaign on bullying prevention among youth — including Asian American, Pacific Islander, Sikh, Muslim, LGBTQI, and immigrant youth.

The Black Liberation Collective is a collective consisting of Black students who are dedicated to transforming institutions of higher education through unity, coalition building, direct action and political education.

Black Lives Matter Foundation, Inc is a global organization in the US, UK, and Canada, whose mission is to eradicate white supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes.

BlackOUT Collective is a radical full service direct action organization. They build organizations’ capacity to execute creative and effective direct actions in service of their organizing and advocacy work.

Center for Policing Equity’s work continues to simultaneously aid police departments to realize their own equity goals as well as advance the scientific understanding of issues of equity within organizations and policing.

Critical Resistance seeks to build an international movement to end the Prison Industrial Complex by challenging the belief that caging and controlling people makes us safe.

The Equal Justice Initiative is committed to ending mass incarceration and excessive punishment in the United States, to challenging racial and economic injustice, and to protecting basic human rights for the most vulnerable people in American society.

The Movement for Black Lives (M4BL) was created as a space for Black organizations across the country to debate and discuss the current political conditions, develop shared assessments of what political interventions were necessary in order to achieve key policy, cultural and political wins, convene organizational leadership in order to debate and co-create a shared movement wide strategy.

The National Museum of African American History and Culture is the only national museum devoted exclusively to the documentation of African American life, history, and culture.

Their mission is to help African-Americans and others in underserved communities achieve their highest true social parity, economic self- reliance, power, and civil rights. The League promotes economic empowerment through education and job training, housing and community development, workforce development, entrepreneurship, health, and quality of life.

Project Nia works to end the incarceration of children and young adults by promoting restorative and transformative justice practices.

SisterSong’s mission is to strengthen and amplify the collective voices of indigenous women and women of color to achieve reproductive justice by eradicating reproductive oppression and securing human rights.

TransformHarm.org is a resource hub about ending violence. This site offers an introduction to transformative justice and includes selected articles, audio-visual resources, curricula, and more.

We The Protesters is a national organization focused on ending racism and police violence in the United States. They have built the most comprehensive database of police violence in the nation, used the data to identify effective policy solutions and supported movement organizers to enact these policies at every level of government.

We work to attain equal opportunity for - and normalize the image of - Muslims in America. With a mission to defend civil rights, fight bigotry, and promote tolerance, our Civil Rights Department provides pro bono legal services to Muslims who have faced discrimination as a result of their race, religion or ethnicity. Our primary mandate is to promote and defend the constitutional rights of all Americans and to assist those who cannot attain justice themselves.

The YWCA’s Racial Justice and Activism programming provides grassroot training for youth and adults to become engaged in racial justice work.

The Audre Lorde Project is a Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Two Spirit, Trans and Gender Non-Conforming People of Color community organizing center, focusing on the New York City area

The National Center for Civil and Human Rights in downtown Atlanta is an engaging cultural attraction that connects the American Civil Rights Movement to today’s struggle for Global Human Rights

The SPLC is a catalyst for racial justice in the South and beyond, working in partnership with communities to dismantle white supremacy, strengthen intersectional movements, and advance the human rights of all people.

Our program emphasizes social justice and anti-bias. The anti-bias approach encourages children and young people to challenge prejudice and learn how to be agents of change in their own lives. Our Social Justice Standards show how anti-bias education works through the four domains of identity, diversity, justice and action.

The Assembly of First Nations (AFN) is a national advocacy organization representing First Nation citizens in Canada, which includes more than 900,000 people living in 634 First Nation communities and in cities and towns across the country.

At Black Boys Code, we are inspiring a generation of young Black men to take control of their future and become tomorrow’s digital creators and technological innovators. We do that by helping them develop digital literacy and computer competence—the foundational building blocks of an educational path towards a career in the technology field.

Incorporated in July 1983, the Black Business and Professional Association (BBPA) is a non-profit charitable organization that serves to address equity and opportunity for the Black community in business, employment, education and economic development. In addition to the Harry Jerome Awards, the National Scholarship Fund and the National Black Business and Professional Convention, the BBPA provides educational and networking opportunities for entrepreneurs and professionals.

The BYH approach brings innovative, professional, culturally relevant perspectives to understanding and addressing the root causes of challenges faced by children, youth and families. Youth, families, schools and other mainstream organizations have a culturally appropriate resource they turn to for related support.

The Canadian Anti-Hate Network is an independent, nonprofit organization made up of Canada’s leading experts and researchers on hate groups and hate crimes. Our Advisory Committee includes academics like Dr. Barbara Perry, court-recognized experts on hate crimes, lawyers with decades of experience with hate groups, people who stood up to the neo-Nazi Heritage Front in the 1990s, and leaders in communities that are being targeted by hate.

We work to improve the health and wellbeing of Inuit. Our work includes research, advocacy, public outreach and education on the issues affecting our population. We work closely with the four Inuit regions to present unified priorities in Ottawa.

The National Congress of Black Women Foundation is a registered charity that promotes and facilitates activities and model programs which foster advancement, recognition, health and education of black women and their families through funding and research.

The National Inquiry must look into and report on the systemic causes of all forms of violence against Indigenous women and girls, including sexual violence. We must examine the underlying social, economic, cultural, institutional, and historical causes that contribute to the ongoing violence and particular vulnerabilities of Indigenous women and girls in Canada.

The Native Women’s Association of Canada (NWAC) is a National Indigenous Organization representing the political voice of Indigenous women, girls and gender diverse people in Canada, inclusive of First Nations on and off reserve, status and non-status, disenfranchised, Métis and Inuit. An aggregate of Indigenous women’s organizations from across the country, NWAC was founded on the collective goal to enhance, promote and foster the social, economic, cultural and political well-being of Indigenous women within their respective communities and Canada societies.

AMSSA is a unique province-wide association that strengthens over 70 member agencies as well as hundreds of community stakeholder agencies who serve immigrants and newcomers, and build culturally inclusive communities, with the knowledge, resources and support they need to fulfill their mandates.

The British Columbia Black History Awareness Society (BCBHAS) celebrates the achievements of Black people in British Columbia by creating an awareness of the history of Blacks in B.C., stimulating interest in the contributions of persons of African ancestry to B.C. and Canada today, and celebrating historical and current achievements in the arts, education, government, sports, science etc.

The BC Civil Liberties Association was established in 1962 and is the oldest and most active civil liberties group in Canada. We are funded by the Law Foundation of B.C. and by citizens who believe in what we do. Our mandate is to promote, defend, sustain, and extend civil liberties and human rights in Canada. We achieve our mandate through our Advocacy in Action, Public Policy, Community Education, and Justice programs. The BCCLA is an autonomous, non-partisan charitable society. Though we strive to work cooperatively with other groups on common causes, we are unaffiliated with any other organization or political group. Our independence has been one of the BCCLA’s enduring strengths for over 50 years.

The Black Legal Action Centre (BLAC) is a new not-for-profit corporation set up under the laws of Ontario in 2017. BLAC delivers legal aid services to low and no income Black Ontarians.

Our mission is to empower, celebrate and support the advancement of Black womxn. Through collaboration with local partners and community agencies, we deliver programs and connect our clients to resources that support their needs.

The Hogan’s Alley Society (HAS) is a non-profit organization composed of civil rights activists, business professionals, community organizations, artists, writers and academics committed to daylighting the presence of Black history in Vancouver and throughout British Columbia. HAS adopts research driven approach to community development that seeks to preserve and promote the historical, cultural, societal and economic contributions made by Black Settlers and their descendants to Vancouver, Greater Vancouver, the Province of British Columbia, the Pacific Northwest and Canada. With this history in the archives, HAS is in process of developing partnerships with local government and business interests to acquire and develop land and operate assets as a community land trust.

The Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre (IRSHDC) privileges and honours the experiences of Survivors, to create a Survivor-centred, trauma-informed space for dialogue. Opened in April 2018, the Centre works to amplify conversations around the legacies of the Indian Residential School System and the on-going impacts of colonialism in Canada.

IRSSS mandate: “To assist First Nation Peoples in British Columbia to recognize and be holistically empowered from the primary and generational effect of the Residential Schools by supporting research, education, awareness, establishing partnerships, and advocating for justice and healing. The Society assists Survivors with counselling, court support, information, referrals, workshops and more.”

MOSAIC is one of the largest settlement non-profit organizations in Canada. We serve immigrant, refugee, migrant and mainstream communities in Greater Vancouver and the Fraser Valley as well as throughout the province of BC and overseas via online programs.

The Ontario Black History Society (OBHS) is a Registered Canadian charity, dedicated to the study, preservation and promotion of Black History and heritage. The Society aims to foster public interest and encourage the interest of Black History through: Recognition, preservation, documentation, and promotion of the contribution of peoples of African descent and their collective histories, past and present, through education, research and collaboration, Development and support of educational initiatives and exhibits, Promoting the inclusion of material on Black History in school curricula

Pivot works in partnership with communities affected by poverty and social exclusion to identify priorities and develop solutions to complex human rights issues. Our work is focused in four policy areas: police accountability, drug policy, homelessness, and sex workers’ rights.
We combine strategic litigation with high-impact public education and advocacy campaigns to maximize our effectiveness. Our deep collaboration with marginalized people and grassroots movements, combined with our unique approach to social change, makes Pivot the only human rights organization of its kind in Canada.

Founded in 2000, Rainbow Refugee is a Vancouver based community group that supports people seeking refugee protection in Canada because of persecution based on sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression (SOGIE) or HIV status

Sanctuary Health is a grassroots community group. We deploy direct action, movement-building, community-engagement, and direct support strategies to advocate for access to services for all regardless of immigration status or documentation. We are committed to building cross-sectoral alliances of mutual support to advance the migrant-justice movement on unceded Coast Salish territories.

Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC) continues to renew the nation-to-nation, Inuit-Crown, government-to-government relationship between Canada and First Nations, Inuit and Métis; modernize Government of Canada structures to enable Indigenous peoples to build capacity and support their vision of self-determination; and lead the Government of Canada's work in the North.

Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) works collaboratively with partners to improve access to high quality services for First Nations, Inuit and Métis. Our vision is to support and empower Indigenous peoples to independently deliver services and address the socio-economic conditions in their communities.

The Canadian Human Rights Commission is Canada's human rights watchdog. We work for the people of Canada and operate independently from the Government. The Commission helps ensure that everyone in Canada is treated fairly, no matter who they are. We are responsible for representing the public interest and holding the Government of Canada to account on matters related to human rights.