2025 - A year in review!

Graphic with Year in Review 2025 of Showing Up for Racial Justice Toronto (SURJ-TO)

Table of Contents

• A year in review

• Fundraising

• Anti-Racism Webinar Series

• Defund Campaign

• Internal Programming

• Stand Alone Events

• Phone & Email Zaps

• Childminding Collective

• Reach, Rallies, Advocacy & Solidarity

• Looking Back, Looking Ahead

SURJ Toronto Year in Review 2025

In 2025, Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) Toronto organized in a moment defined by overlapping crises: rising authoritarianism and hate, deepening economic inequality, escalating state violence and growing global movements for liberation. Across Turtle Island and beyond, communities faced intensifying attacks on migrants, Indigenous sovereignty, disability justice, housing security and Palestinian life. At the same time, more people than ever were searching for ways to act collectively and resist systems that continue to prioritize punishment over care.

Within this context, SURJ Toronto remains committed to our core purpose: organizing white people into accountable action for racial justice while redistributing resources, strengthening movement infrastructure and showing up in principled solidarity with frontline communities. Throughout the year, we focused on deepening political education, building practical skills for collective care and safety as well as supporting grassroots organizers through fundraising, advocacy and sustained relationship-building.

Photo of 2 SURJ Toronto members staffing an info table for SURJ Toronto. They are smiling at the camera and giving the thumbs up.

Photo of a group of SURJ Toronto members at a SURJ social picnic in the park.

Fundraising

In 2025, we moved over $82,500 to BIPOC movement partners in the GTA and internationally. This year, we supported 23 organizations, largely grassroots and hard-to-fund groups. 

At a time when grassroots organizations face shrinking funding opportunities and increasing political pressure, collectively redistributing over $80k demonstrates the power of community-led resource sharing. Movements cannot survive on passion alone; they need material support. This work reflects a growing commitment among Torontonians to materially support movements for justice, not just express solidarity in words.

SURJ TO is proud to support: Black Daddies Club, No More Silence, Jane-Finch Action Against Poverty, Sudan Solidarity Collective, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East, Movement Media Hub, Masafer Yatta community organizers, Community Peacemakers, Toronto Community Justice Fund, Palestinian Youth Movement Toronto, Gidimt’en Checkpoint, Free Grassy Narrows, Beausoleil Island First Nation, Butterfly, Al Awda Centre, Manitoba wildfire relief, 230 FightBack, Toronto Disability Pride March, Kill Bill 5 encampment, Niya’s Coily World, No Pride in Policing, Migrant Rights Network, Freedom Flotilla, Mothers Coming Together Again,   

Please visit https://www.surjtoronto.com/donate to contribute a monthly donation! To continue our fight for collective liberation, it is imperative to pool our resources and take collective action whenever and wherever possible.

Anti-Racism Webinar Series

In 2025, we hosted 5 webinars as part of our Anti-Racism Series. This included:

Shut It Uncle Bob! Speaking to Racist Family, Friends, and Loved Ones

Led by Rania El Mugammar, this workshop explores strategies and tactics for addressing racism from loved ones in meaningful and impactful ways. Participants engaged in interactive scenarios to confront bias, challenge dismissive narratives about race, explore the roots of prejudice and develop tools for fostering meaningful, lasting change.

Graphic advertising webinar, “Shut It Uncle Bob! Speaking to Racist Family, Friends, and Loved Ones” with anti-racist educator Rania El Mugammar.

Dispatches from the Occupied West Bank

This workshop featured youth activists and organizers direct from the West Bank. Participants learned about the situation on-the-ground in Palestine, what daily life is like under apartheid, and occupation realities for Palestinians in the West Bank, as well provided concrete tools for people living in Canada to join the global the movement for peace, justice and liberation of Palestine.

Graphic advertising webinar “Dispatches from the Occupied West Bank.”

Land Back: Indigenous Resistance from Coast to Coast

This panel brought together Indigenous land and water defenders from across Turtle Island to share firsthand experiences of resistance, resurgence, and sovereignty. Featuring Judy Da Silva (Grassy Narrows First Nation), Tsakë ze’ Sleydo’ Molly Wickham (Wet’suwet’en Gidimt’en clan), and Kuku’wis Wowkis (Mi’kmaq land and water protector), and moderated by Leanne Betasamosake Simpson, the discussion grounded participants in the ongoing realities of settler colonialism and the powerful movements challenging it.

Graphic advertising webinar, “Land Back: Indigenous Resistance from Coast to Coast” with Leanne Betasamosake Simpson as moderator and Tsake ze’ Sleydo’ Molly Wickham, Judy Da Silva, and Kuku’wis Wowkis as the invited panelists.

Anti-Oppression & Anti-Racism 101: Intro to Social Justice & Liberation

Led by Rania El Mugammar, this webinar presented a tangible education of what racism and privilege mean and what all of us (especially white people) can do to learn more and be on the right side of history.

Migrants Under Attack from Coast to Coast

This panel, showcasing SK Hussan, Mostafa Henaway and Harsha Walia, gathered powerful voices from across the country with more than 20 years of experience each to share the impact of violence and resistance faced by immigrants and undocumented folks.

These sessions brought together hundreds of participants across Toronto and beyond, reflecting a growing desire for political education spaces where people can move from awareness to action. In a climate of rising hate and misinformation, these spaces are essential for honest dialogue, skill-building and collective learning.

Alternatives to 911 Community Skillbuilding Series

In January, alongside Toronto Street Medics, we hosted Street Medics 101: Fighting the State, Taking Care of Each Other. In this workshop, we dove into the lineages and ethics of providing street medicine support, including bodily autonomy, harm reduction and collective care. The goal of these workshops was for participants to leave with practical knowledge and skills, and an abolitionist framework for collective safety/risk considerations around calling EMS for medical emergencies, particularly in the context of protests and direct actions.

Graphic advertising webinar, “Street Medics 101: Fighting the State, Taking Care of Each Other” co-hosted by Toronto Street Medics

Additionally, as part of the Community Skill Building Series, in October and November, we hosted a 3-part Responding to Intimate Partner Violence Through Community Care Series, including: Creating Networks of Support Through Podmapping, Safety Planning Using Mutual Aid and Accessing Justice Through Community Accountability. Led by PhD student Chantel Jeremiah, the learning outcomes of this series resulted in participants learning to identify strategies, tools and practices that emphasize community care, accountability and prevention in response to intimate partner violence. The goal was to turn theory into tangible action by reimagining IPV crisis response through collective support and sustainable alternatives.

Graphic advertising webinar, “Responding to Intimate Partner Violence Through Community Care: A Transformative Workshop Three Part Series” with Facilitator Chantel Jeremiah (she/her), PhD Student, University of Toronto.

At a time when governments continue to expand policing budgets, building community-based alternatives is both visionary and necessary. These workshops demonstrate that Torontonians are ready to imagine and practice safety beyond the carceral state.

Defund Campaign

The Issue

The Toronto Police Services Budget is the second most expensive line item in the city’s budget, with a proposed 2026 budget of $1.43 billion. Policing receives more money than libraries, shelters and housing services, social services and employment, and public health combined. Meanwhile, profiling, targeting, and violent over-policing of Black, Indigenous, disabled, 2SLGBTQ+, and unhoused residents continues while vital, existing community services are underfunded. Policing does not address the root causes of harm in our communities.

Building Skills: Campaign Coaching

From February to December 2025, the SURJ Defund team met with campaign coach Kim Huynh from Training for Change to build our skills and capacity to participate and co-strategize around a local Defund campaign.

Testing a Ward Based Approach

SURJ’s Defund Team responded to a call from Another Toronto Is Possible to organize in individual wards throughout the city to build ground-up support for reducing the police budget. They worked in Ward 12: Toronto-St. Paul to test this ward-based organizing approach that could start to build momentum towards a 2027 budget vote to redirect police funding towards community-led projects.

Listening Tour

As part of their ward-based strategy, the Defund Team members attended events, canvassed, and spoke to community groups in Ward 12 ahead of the 2026 city budget vote. This helped us understand some major safety-related concerns and key community needs in the ward, and build ongoing relationships with community groups, particularly in the Oakwood Vaughn neighbourhood.

The Pledge

In partnership with Black Action Defense Committee, Oakwood Vaughn Community Organization, and MADANT, SURJ Toronto created a pledge asking Ward 12’s city councillor Josh Matlow to support moving money away from the police budget and towards 2 community-identified concerns: third spaces for youth and seniors, and community-led mental health crisis lines. The pledge specifically suggested cutting the mounted police, and reducing police overtime spending. SURJ TO members brought the pledge to community members through canvassing, a hot chocolate stand, and a round table meeting.

Read the full text of the pledge here!

Internal Programming

Education

Although we offer community-wide events, we believe in the importance of having a space for our members to grow. We believe in a space where members can continuously sharpen their political education, mutually build analysis and share skills and ideas.

In the fall of 2025, we hosted 6 internal education sessions including: Understanding Fascism and the Anti-Fascist Struggle, Calling People Out Productively, What is our Theory of Change?, Federal NDP Leadership Race and two sessions of Strength Training for Activists.

Sustaining internal political education is an often invisible but essential part of movement work, as it allows us to organize strategically and responsibly. These sessions strengthen our collective analysis and ensure SURJ Toronto remains a learning organization capable of adapting to changing political conditions. The fact that members continue to show up month after month speaks to the depth of commitment within this community.

Events

Throughout 2025, we brought SURJ members together via social events. This included a movie night (with a screening of The Settlers), a summer park hang, the Draw the Line art party, a Streetknit meet-up and a year-end social.

In a time of widespread burnout and isolation among organizers, creating spaces for joy, connection and relationship-building is itself political work. These gatherings helped sustain the relationships that make long-term organizing possible.

Collectives

In February, the Study & Action collective began. Similar to a book club, Study & Action adds a tangible action each week for its participants. This 3-part series examined mutual interest and Indigenous solidarity and fundraising. Participants wrote their mutual interest story, participated in a rally and developed/distributed a fundraising proposal. Started by one of SURJ’s US chapters, Study & Action embodies our belief that learning must be paired with doing. Participants didn’t just read, they mobilized.

In April, the Not Your Rescue Project book club began, exploring migration, sex work, policing and the "anti-trafficking industry." Hosted in collaboration with No More Silence, each session included a Q&A with authors Chanelle Gallant and Elene Lam.

Graphic advertising book club, “Not Your Rescue Project: Migrant Sex Workers Fighting for Justice” By Founding Member of SURJ Toronto, Chanelle Gallant and movement partner, Elene Lam. This book club is co-hosted with No More Silence.

Later, in October, The Red Deal: Indigenous Action to Save our Earth book club began, exploring Indigenous liberation, life and land. The book chosen for exploration centred on explaining colonialism and Turtle Island (North America), and how all of our teams at SURJ are related.

Graphic of the The Red Deal: Indigenous Action to Save our Earth book cover written by The Red Nation.

These collectives continue to grow SURJ Toronto’s organizing base by inviting new people into sustained political engagement rather than one-time participation.

Standalone Events & Webinars

The breadth of partnerships in 2025 reflects the trust SURJ Toronto built within the broader movement ecosystem. We are honoured to be invited into collaboration and to play a meaningful role in collective struggles.

In January, we hosted Power: A Film & Discussion on Defunding the Police with Resource Movement. At this film screening, participants explored the historical origins of policing in the United States and Canada, reflected on how these histories shape contemporary understandings of safety and justice and connected these insights to ongoing conversations within the Defund movement.

Graphic advertising Film,  “Power” A Netflix Documentary, with a discussion of defunding the police afterwards. Co-hosted by Resource Movement and Toronto Community Justice Fund.

In early March, the Defund team hosted How to Win: Lessons from a Successful Campaign to Defund the Police. As the Toronto City Council recently approved $46.2 million (3.9%) increase to the police budget, this webinar provided an overview on why defunding the police matters, what it looks like and how we can achieve meaningful change to redefine public safety.

Image description: A graphic advertising webinar, “How to Win: Lessons from a Successful Campaign to Defund the Police” with Robyn Maynard and Angelica Chazaro

In early July, Toronto-based activist and SURJ TO member Anna Lippman hosted Witnessing and Resisting: On the Front Lines of Ethnic Cleansing in Masafer Yatta. In this event, Anna shared her experience of spending three months on the front lines of settler and State violence in the occupied West Bank.

A graphic advertising a webinar, “Witnessing and Resisting: On the Font Lines of Ethnic Cleansing in Masafer Yatta”

In late July, SURJ TO Founding Member Chanelle Gallant led the Sex Work as Resistance Summer Institute. Participants in this workshop series learnt about sex workers and explored some of the ways that marginalized women and LGBTQ people use sex work to resist social and economic domination and exploitation and how the carceral state tries to stop them through criminalization, discrimination and stigma.

Graphic advertising workshop series, “Sex Work as Resistance,” with SURJ Toronto founder, Channelle Gallant, MA.

In September, we partnered with Davenport Aid Brigade to host the Dispatches from Cairo webinar. Davenport Aid Brigade is a grassroots organization with teams working in Toronto and Cairo, with funds raised being distributed directly to Palestinian families by the teams on the ground. This webinar gave participants an opportunity to hear directly from a Davenport Aid Brigade team member working in Egypt.

Graphic advertising webinar, “Dispatches from Cairo” with the Davenport Aid Brigade.

In early October, in collaboration with the York South Weston Tenants’ Union and Migrant Workers Alliance for Change, we hosted Do refugees and migrants cause the housing crisis? FALSE! This event was a community conversation bringing together housing justice and migrant justice groups to break down the real causes of the housing crisis, its impact on migrants, refugees and low-income communities who are hit the hardest. This event was part of the People’s Assembly for Housing Justice “Know Your City” People’s School. Looking to learn more? Check out this video/blog!

Graphic advertising community conversation, “Do refugees and migrants cause the housing crisis? FALSE!” cohost-ed with York South Weston Tenants’ Union and Migrant Workers Alliance for Change.

In late October, we hosted a virtual workshop with Karen BK Chan on Calling in: Practising the Care We Want in the World. This workshop explored what it means to call each other in as well as learn concrete skills and scripts for everyday life.

Graphic advertising webinar, “Calling In: Practising the Care we Want in the World” with Karen BK Chan.

In November, we hosted Butterflies in the Coalmine: Solidarity, Strength & Warning Signs from Migrant Sex Worker Organizers. With speakers Elene Lam, Chanelle Gallant, and Harsha Walia, this fundraiser webinar for Butterfly Asian & Migrant Sex Workers Support Network brought folks together to learn and to support the amazing and critical work of Butterfly organizers.

Graphic advertising webinar, “Butterflies in the Coalmine: Solidarity, Strength & Warning Signs from Migrant Sex Worker Organizers.” With speakers Elene Lam, Chanelle Gallant, and Harsha Walia. Co-hosted with butterfly and Resource Movement.

Phone & Email Zaps

Throughout 2025, we participated and hosted a number of Phone & Email Zaps. This included Budget Bash hosted by the Defunding team, Save our Safe Consumption Sites with Toronto OD Prevention Society, Rescind Bill 6, and Kill Bill 5 with Nagweyaab Ishkode.

Graphic advertising SURJ’s Budget Bash email & phone zap party in February.

Graphic advertising a “Keep Supervised Consumption Sites Open” phone and email action in April, co-hosted with Toronto Overdose Prevention Society. Co-hosted with Toronto Overdose Prevention Society.

Graphic advertising Kill Bill 5 weekly phone & email zaps, co-hosted with Nagweyaab Ishkode, Fridays at noon on Zoom.

The strong turnout for these events demonstrates that many Torontonians are actively seeking alternatives to dominant narratives about policing, migration, and global justice. These conversations highlight a growing willingness among community members to engage critically with systems of power and imagine transformative alternatives.

Childminding

In 2025, the Childminding Collective held 6 monthly training sessions, building skills for 20 new childminders. The collective also offered childminding at 7 community events last year, including the Draw the Line rally and the Spring Magazine Red October Conference. Our goal is to directly support organizers in the city of Toronto by offering childminding at regular meetings, events and small-scale actions. By providing this service, we support increased accessibility for parents and caregivers and expand the racial justice movement!

By offering childminding, SURJ Toronto removes one of the most common barriers to participation in organizing spaces. This work expands who can take part in movements for justice and reflects our commitment to accessibility as a collective responsibility. In a political climate where burnout is rampant, creating conditions that allow caregivers to participate is an act of movement sustainability.

Graphic announcing that SURJ Toronto will provide free childminding at Spring’s Red October Conference.

Graphic advertising the return of the SURJ Toronto Childminding Collective.

Graphic encouraging people to join a training for the SURJ Toronto Childminding Collective.

Reach, Rallies, Advocacy & Solidarity

In 2025, we actively participated in the September Anti-Hate Rally at Christie Pits, as well as the Draw the Line Rally. We showed our support for the June Kill Bill 5 Encampment by dropping off donations, as well as at Camp Anjitoon in December. In support of No More Silence, we aided with clean-up and painting at the Hummingbird Lodge, and provided volunteering and marshalling at their annual Strawberry Ceremony.

This past year, whether via Instagram marketing or sending SURJ members, we aimed to participate in as many community advocacy events as possible. Much of our work revolved around Palestinian solidarity. Most notably, we collaborated with the following community organizations: Davenport 4 Palestine, East End Acts for Palestine, Gazan Canadians League, Jews Say No to Genocide, PYM Toronto, and Toronto Families for Palestine. Throughout the year, we supported emergency press conferences, vigils, emergency protests, rallies, leafleting, sit-ins and more.

Photo of a group of SURJ Toronto members attending the Draw the Line March at Sankofa Square. Some are holding signs reading “SURJ Toronto Showing Up for Racial Justice” and “Land Back End Ongoing Colonialism.”

Photo of protestors at Queen’s Park. The most visible sign reads “Land Back End Ongoing Colonialism.”

Showing up consistently across dozens of actions demonstrates the strength of Toronto’s interconnected justice movements and SURJ’s role as a reliable partner in moments of urgency and mobilization.

Alongside community promotion, our Instagram included a wide variety of educational advocacy posts. Topics included: Bill 5, 6, C-2 and C-9, the Indigo 11, housing, safe consumption sites, the return of police-in-schools programs, upcoming elections, the $200 Ontario taxpayer rebate, the Nova Exhibition, the RCMP and more!

In 2025, our Instagram hit 20,000 followers. This milestone reflects a growing audience seeking political education and action-oriented analysis in an increasingly fragmented media landscape. It signals that our messaging is resonating and that more people are looking for ways to take action.

Graphic text reading “Toronto Loves City Workers,” with the O in loves replaced with a heart.

 Photo of protestors at Queen’s Park, some carrying Palestinian flags, others holding “Climate Justice Now” signs.

Graphic opposing Bill C-9. Text reads: “Bill C-9 Makes Protest a Crime. Time is running out to stop Bill C-9 from being passed into law.”

The Liberal government is working with the Conservatives to amend and pass the Bill that criminalizes protest with up to 10 years in prison if protestors are accused of having intent to ‘invoke fear’ when protesting outside a long list of protected buildings. This could include labour strikes and pickets.

And now, Conservatives are looking to add language which they have said they will use to criminalize Palestine solidarity. Canadian rights should not be sacrificed to shield foreign governments.

Write the Government to Vote Against Bill C-9: https://tinyurl.com/SayNoToC9.”

Looking Back, Looking Ahead

As we reflect on 2025, we are reminded that movements are built not only through moments of crisis, but through sustained relationships, shared learning and the everyday work of showing up for one another. This year demonstrated the power of collective action, from redistributing resources to grassroots organizers, to building political education spaces, to standing in solidarity with communities resisting injustice locally and globally. Each training, webinar, rally and conversation contributed to a growing ecosystem of care, resistance and possibility.

Looking ahead, 2026 brings an extraordinary milestone: SURJ Toronto’s 10-year anniversary. Reaching a decade of grassroots organizing is no small feat. Many volunteer-driven movements struggle to sustain themselves over time, yet SURJ Toronto continues to grow because of the dedication, courage and commitment of our members, partners, and broader community. Over the past ten years, we learned, adapted and deepened our understanding of what it means to organize white communities in accountable solidarity, and we remain committed to evolving alongside the movements we support

In a year marked by repression, political backlash and global instability, the simple fact that we continue to organize, to learn, to move money and to show up is a testament to the strength of this community. Grassroots organizations are fragile. Sustaining volunteer-driven, anti-racist organizing year after year is nothing short of a collective achievement. You can check out our previous Year In Reviews here:2024,2023,2022.

As we enter this next chapter, we carry forward the lessons of the past decade: that transformation happens collectively, that solidarity is a practice, and that another world is built through sustained action. With gratitude for everyone who organized, donated, learned and struggled alongside us, we move into 2026 grounded in hope, accountability and the ongoing work of collective liberation.