Jane-Finch community organization aims to flip script on stigma with new anti-bias fundraising campaign

Youth workers in Toronto's Jane and Finch area are flipping the script on negative stereotypes about their communities with a new fundraising campaign that offers anti-bias training in exchange for donations to bolster their programming.

Jane/Finch Centre youth worker Delux Yogarajah describes his community as resilient but says too often, it's overshadowed by historical biases that paint the area as violent.

"What we want to do now is reclaim our narrative," Yogarajah told CBC Toronto in an interview. "Jane and Finch is a vibrant, beautiful community."

The Write Us Off campaign, designed and presented by local youth leaders, aims to challenge prejudice and support local programs at the centre, including mental health services, financial literacy workshops, and the youth violence prevention project that Yogarajah coordinates. 

Learners can pay for the training through a donation that can be written off their taxes with a receipt from the charity. According to Toronto Police Service's public safety data portal, shooting incidents in the Black Creek and Glenfield-Jane Heights neighbourhood, areas to the north and south of the Jane-Finch intersection, decreased from 2019 to 2023. Despite that, stigma is persistent, advocates say.

Changing how people see their area and helping them recognize prejudice can help pave the way for a more inclusive future, director and writer Tristan Barrocks says. 

"If we can just reshape or recalibrate our perspectives of people coming out of communities, we might be able to find the next big scientist, the next filmmaker, the next prime minister."

Many companies already have a form of anti-bias training, but this initiative elevates the voices of people experiencing bias, says Shakil Choudhury, the co-founder of Anima Leadership, a consulting and training company with a focus on diversity, equity and inclusion.

"There is nothing more effective in getting people to pause and think and want to learn than when people share their own stories," he said.

Annie-Marie Docherty, president of ice cream company Halo Top Canada, says the training delivers something the average course doesn't. "The four contributors share their stories and really provide some eye-opening examples for us on their life experiences," she said. "And they deliver in such an impactful way that it's very different than what we would see in our typical training." Yogarajah says the anti-bias training and donations will help unlock opportunities for generations to come. "I'm excited for the future," he said.

For more stories about the experiences of Black Canadians — from anti-Black racism to success stories within the Black community — check out Being Black in Canada, a CBC project Black Canadians can be proud of. You can read more stories here.