Today we acknowledge the grief, pain and trauma of First Nation, Métis, and Inuit people and communities, following release of preliminary grounds-survey findings locating unrecovered remains of children at a former Residential School in Kamloops. We stand in solemn solidarity with First Nation, Métis, and Inuit communities and we mourn the 215 children who died at this site. We must continue to self-educate, reflect, and confront the disgraceful legacy of the Residential School system and the ways in which colonization continues to oppress, harm, and traumatize First Nation, Métis, and Inuit people. As ever, we must all continue to interrogate our often

As we mark the solemn, one-year anniversary of the murder of George Floyd, we continue to see state sanctioned violence against African, Caribbean, Black Latinx, and Black; Indigenous, immigrant and racialized people across Ontario.  Yesterday, Canadians marched in memory of Regis Korchinski-Paquet. Today, we remember those who have been harmed and killed by state violence. We reflect on the work, advancements and heartaches of this past year and look ahead to the work done at OAN and beyond.  Over the past year, the OAN has held space and engaged our membership and partners in challenging and impactful conversations and action

Announcing the PLDI Grad-Check-In on May 27, between 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm EST. “Caring for myself is not self-indulgence; it is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare.”  Audre Lorde Topic: Self-Care as WarfareWhat is the one thing that has been keeping you going during COVID-19? Join the PLDI team and fellow PLDI graduates for some fun (prizes to be won) and a deep discussion on joy, resilience, and self-care. Each graduate who wants to present will have 4 minutes to present. Don’t want to present? No problem, please join us to take in the presentations. Register in advance for

This month the PLDI reached the milestone of 15 years of programming excellence. We are so proud of how PLDI has grown and developed, where we are today, and where we are heading.  We’d like to extend our thanks and appreciation to the more than 1,000 PLDI graduates in Ontario. We believe that the PLDI and your leadership has shaped the Ontario HIV sector into what it now is. We extend our thanks to the people who made PLDI what it is today. We owe deep gratitude to OAN staff past and present including Rick Kennedy and Thomas Egdorf, PLDI

Women’s Health in Women’s Hands (WHIWH) is excited to announce a research study, #SafeHandsSafeHearts – Peer Counselling for LGBTQ+ Racialized Folks! #SafeHandsSafeHearts is a study taking place in collaboration with WHIWH, and they are now recruiting participants for this study! About the StudyThe project aims to support Black, African, Caribbean, Latin American, and South Asian sexual and gender minority communities amid the COVID-19 pandemic. It involves three online counseling sessions to increase COVID-19 knowledge and protective behaviors and reduce pandemic stress (anxiety, depression, loneliness).  How to ParticipateWHIWH encourages adults over 18 who identify as Black, African, Caribbean, Latin American, South Asian, and LGBTQIA+ to apply.

The Committee for Accessible AIDS Treatment (CAAT) is a coalition of affected individuals and organizations committed to promoting the health and wellbeing of people living with HIV (PHAs) who are facing access barriers related to their precarious status in Canada. The Legacy Project is a PHA mentorship program to improve access to health and social services, address stigma, and increase uptake of behaviors that prevent HIV, especially those from racial minority communities and those who are newcomers to Canada. OA45+ is a program under the Legacy umbrella that consists of three-day in-person training for racialized Persons Living with HIV (PHA)

The past few weeks have provided an opportunity for Ontario’s HIV sector to reflect on the realities of anti-Asian racism. It’s important that we stand in solidarity with Asian communities, speak out against anti-Asian racism, and reflect on long histories of anti-Asian racism in Canada.  The OAN stands in solidarity with Asian Community AIDS Services (ACAS), it partners and Ontario’s Asian communities who have been hurt by the murder of 8 individuals in Atlanta and a significant increase in explicit violence against Asians. The Board of Directors of ACAS has issued a statement on Anti-Asian Racism found here. We urge all OAN

The Ontario AIDS Network Team wants to hear from all our Newsletter readers.We are conducting a Newsletter Survey and would like to know what you think about the OAN Newsletter. Your feedback will help us to meet your needs and improve our work. This quick survey takes approximately 10 minutes. Thank you for your time.Please go here to begin the survey.This survey closes on Wednesday, March 31st, 2021, at 5:00 pm.