Empowering Arab women in Waterloo Region and beyond
A new program is providing support to Arab women in Waterloo Region, thanks in part to a grant from Waterloo Region Community Foundation (WRCF).
Canadian Arab Women's Association (CAWA) received $17,000 for its Strong Families Together program through WRCF’s 2021 Racial Equity Fund. The program, which started in August 2021, brings Arab women who are newcomers, immigrants, and otherwise marginalized together with their peers so they can feel connected to community.
“It’s really a place to connect and to learn new things, to provide a sense of belonging by being part of something and get the sense of achievement from learning something new” says Anneke van den Berg, Program Director at CAWA.
As one aspect of the program, the CAWA team coordinates training sessions with guest speakers from local organizations to educate participants on resources that are available to them in Waterloo Region. They also have ongoing communication through a WhatsApp group, so the women can feel engaged between sessions, and get support on any questions they might have. Many of these questions end up with CAWA's Community Services Worker, who helps program participants, through one-on-one support, access community resources.
With WRCF’s funding, CAWA was able to extend their program into 2022 for an additional four months, which will continue to provide a safe space for women to connect and feel empowered.
“We are grateful for the funding from WRCF, because it allows us to continue our work with these women,” says CAWA’s Founder & Executive Director Asma Al-Wahsh. “We don't want to stop this program because it's really important to Arab women in our region.”
The program’s initial goal was to reach 70 women, but CAWA has already reached 120 participants – and others are interested.
“When you’re educating a woman the information doesn’t just stop with her,” says van den Berg. “They’re going to tell their neighbours, sisters, daughters, and friends. Because the information is important and should be shared with everyone.”
Although this program is hyper-local to Waterloo Region, switching to online sessions during the pandemic has made the group accessible to people across Ontario looking for similar supports.
“We are filling a gap that other places don’t have,” says Al-Wahsh. “We have Arab women attending from Mississauga, London and Ottawa. It’s a very popular program, especially with newcomer women.”
Participants meet every other Tuesday via Zoom and have wonderful things to say about the program:
“CAWA is doing beautiful work. CAWA has given Arab women a sense of security and strength through their presence.”
“Special thanks to everyone at CAWA for the programs offered by the organization to help integrate Arab women into Canadian society.”
CAWA helped me stay safe. Because of CAWA I now understand my rights in Canada. I understand that I have the right to live here. They did all the work to help me reach social services in Canada. Today I'm a free woman, today I'm a safe woman with my full rights to be in this country without worrying about getting deported because of my ex-husband. Today I'm safe with my kids around me. If there was anything more than words that I could do to thank all the staff of CAWA, I would do it.
CAWA is looking for additional funding, so they can continue to offer this program in the summer. To learn more about CAWA, and how you can support their Strong Families Together program, visit www.cawakw.ca or email info@cawakw.ca.
Racial Equity Fund
WRCF launched the Racial Equity Fund to support organizations that are led-by and serve people across Waterloo Region who are Black, Indigenous and people of colour.
In 2021, the Racial Equity Fund provided $436,000 to 29 local organizations. $125,000 was supported through a partnership with the Astley Family Foundation, with additional donations by Equitable Life of Canada and several WRCF Fundholders and Donors. To learn more about this fund, visit www.wrcf.ca/racialequity.
Note: This story was written prior to Cambridge & North Dumfries Community Foundation and Kitchener Waterloo Community Foundation unifying to become Waterloo Region Community Foundation. Although the story was created by KWCF, we have updated the organization name to WRCF throughout the story.