In a new submission to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child, CFSC has shared our concerns about the wellbeing of children when their parents come into conflict with the law. We explain to the Committee on the Rights of the Child what programs currently exist in Canada, the available data about … read more
In the last 50 years, around 500,000 Canadians have received a pardon or record suspension for a crime. Of those, 95% have remained crime-free in the community. This highlights the overall effectiveness of the suspension of criminal records. In 2010-11 new laws came forward to raise fees for applying for a record suspension. They … read more
Canadian Friends Service Committee, the peace and social justice agency of Quakers in Canada, is pleased to launch three new icons for our three program areas: criminal justice, Indigenous peoples’ human rights, and peace. The icons are part of our overall strategy of sharing communications that are simple, honest, and easy to understand. The icons … read more
In response to the current high profile around the Wet’suwet’en land defense, many Friends and CFSC supporters have reached out to us in recent days and weeks. Some of what’s circulating in the media and online is not carefully written and can actually increase misunderstandings. Good quality information is critical. That’s why we’re sharing links … read more
On January 28th Canadian Friends Service Committee, the peace and social justice agency of Quakers in Canada, was dismayed to learn the details of the United States’ Middle East “peace” plan. This plan makes a mockery of the word “peace.” Over our 89 years of peace work, CFSC has come to know deeply that peace … read more
The following open letter was sent to Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Defence Minister Dear Ministers, Greetings from Canadian Friends Service Committee, the peace and social justice agency of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in Canada. Our hearts are heavy as the prospect of another war looms before us, this time with Iran. … read more
Canadian Friends Service Committee’s book Are We Done Fighting? Building Understanding in a World of Hate and Division was published in May 2019 by New Society Publishers. Since then, Peace Program Coordinator Matt Legge, who wrote it with significant inputs from many different Friends as part of his work for CFSC, has been busy. He … read more
CFSC is pleased to announce that Nancy Russell has been hired to fill the part-time staff position of Criminal Justice Program Coordinator. Nancy is also currently a part-time faculty member at Humber College and until recently held the position of Advocate at the Office of the Ontario Child Advocate for ten years. Throughout Nancy’s 30-plus-year … read more
Canadian Friends Service Committee (Quakers) expresses deep concern for the current volatile situation escalating in Wet’suwet’en territory. This is the second year of increased threats on Wet’suwet’en territories, escalating from December 2018 when substantial threats of force were made against Indigenous peoples there. Intimidation, arrests leading to detention, and threats of armed violence have been … read more
December 10th is Human Rights Day, acknowledged each year on the anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.This year, CFSC staff Jennifer Preston and associate member Paul Joffe spoke at a roundtable event organized by one member of each of Canada’s political parties. The roundtable was meant to create non-partisan understanding … read more