Black Community Solidarity Fund nears $125,000
WATERLOO REGION — An online fundraiser for the Black community has raised almost $125,000 this week in the wake of Black Lives Matter protests and demonstrations across North America.
The Black Community Solidarity Fund is raising money to provide support to ongoing Black-led anti-racist projects and organizations in the region. The fundraiser was launched by Black Lives Matter Waterloo Region.
It will also raise money for groups run by Black youth in Waterloo Region. Some of these youth-led groups include Young City Growers, an urban agricultural initiative, and Africa Camp, a summer camp opportunity for children of African descent.
These funds will also go toward supporting local post-secondary and high school Black student associations.
The Black Community Solidarity Fund will also support community groups dedicated to the wellness and care of Black individuals in the region. These groups include Woke Women and Woke Men, African Community Wellness Initiative and Bring on the Sunshine Waterloo Region.
This week, thousands of people marched in solidarity with Black Lives Matter groups across the province, including marches in Kitchener, Guelph and Cambridge.
Organizers of the Kitchener march say 36,000 people marched with them in downtown Kitchener on Wednesday.
Marches, protests and demonstrations have cropped up across North America to protest police brutality against Black individuals after the death of George Floyd on May 25.
Floyd died after a Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes.
A small portion of the local Black Community Solidarity Fund, 20 per cent, will provide support and relief to organizers and activists on the ground in Minnesota and in Louisville, Kentucky.
The local chapter of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation donated $5,000 to the local fund. The union represents public high school teachers in Waterloo Region.
Other large donations have come from The Walper Hotel and Abel’s on Queen Barbershop, who donated $1,000 each.