Seeking support?
If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, call 911 or your local emergency services (police, fire, ambulance).
Below are links to several services, and information that may be helpful to you, spread through various regions in Ontario.
Mental health services
AMANI Mental Health & Substance Use Program:
- Provides culturally responsive mental health and substance use services across multiple Ontario sites like Toronto, Peel, Ottawa, and Hamilton for youth from ages 12-25, alongside their families and caregivers.
RiseUp Powered by Kids Help Phone:
- A Canada-wide, 24/7, bilingual e-mental health service built specifically for African, Caribbean, and Black youth. It connects young people to crisis responders who understand structural barriers and systemic anti-Black racism. The service is free and available from coast to coast to coast.
- Managed by Parents of Black Children, this program leverages foundations to provide Black students and youth under 25 with up to three free therapy sessions from vetted mental health firms in Ontario.
Health and wellness
- Providing programs and services for children, youth, women, seniors and families in the Region of Peel. Their programs create pathways to wellness that help empower and inspire clients to build on their strengths and find solutions to overcome the challenges they face.
TAIBU Community Health Centre:
- Offers Black-identifying clients from throughout the Greater Toronto Area access to primary care, health promotion and disease prevention programs in a culturally affirming environment.
Support in navigating systemic/structural barriers
-
Offers culturally relevant youth and family assessments, interventions, system navigation, and stay-in-school support for Black youth.
-
Available 9 AM–10 PM, 7 days a week; online service requests available 24/7.
-
Toronto: 416-285-9944 | National: 1-833-294-8650
-
Email: info@blackyouth.ca
Student and Family Advocates (SFA) Program:
- Run through local hubs like the Malvern Family Resource Centre (MFRC) and Delta Family Resource Centre, offering direct advocacy inside school boards to navigate disciplinary actions and prevent early high school leaving.
Legal Aid
BLAC | Black Legal Action Centre:
- Offers legal aid and public legal education sessions related to anti-black racism for low-income Black Ontarians.
Identity Development
The R.I.T.E.S. Program for Black and African Canadian Youth:
- A culturally specific identity development initiative designed to support the emotional empowerment of Black and African Canadian youth.
Educational opportunities and scholarships
The Black Foundation of Community Networks (BFCN):
- The Black Foundation of Community Networks maintains a directory of Canadian scholarships specifically for Black students, alongside workshops that teach youth how to write letters of intent.
Young, Gifted and Black Scholarship:
- Organized by Parents of Black Children and the Black Education Fund, this initiative awards $1,000 one-time scholarships to outstanding Black students entering post-secondary streams.
RioCan and BlackNorth Initiative Bursary:
- Provides $5,300 for university/college education or $2,650 for trades education. It targets Black students who demonstrate financial need and are entering fields related to commercial real estate.
Circle of Success Educational Grant for Black Students:
- CPA Ontario provides up to $25,000 per year in funding for Black post-secondary students. It includes continuous professional mentorship and networking connections with Black CPAs.
- Runs free technology and coding camps across Ontario (including Toronto, Brampton, Hamilton, Waterloo, Ottawa, and Windsor) and virtually to teach digital fundamentals to Black boys ages 8-14.
- Run by the Diversity Institute at Toronto Metropolitan University. It offers fully funded upskilling in cybersecurity, SEO, Google Analytics, and career coaching to bridge entry into professional spaces.
Career development & mentorship
Black Youth Action Plan (BYAP):
- An Ontario government initiative providing career advancement, sector training, and entrepreneurship support.
- Directed at early-career professionals and youth to eliminate systemic barriers in healthcare technologies, offering training for high-paying positions in the health sector.
- A free, 5-month hybrid program partnering with the BYAP for Black youth aged 15 to 24, focusing on creative entrepreneurship, production business, and the creator economy.