Quaker Concern newsletter Summer 2026

Image of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights that civil society groups say needs to have curatorial independence

Civil society groups support curatorial independence of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights

July 22, 2026

CFSC staff visit Eeyou Istchee (The Peoples Land)

Lessons from the road #1: road trip to Eeyou Istchee (the Peoples’ land)

August 27, 2026

Tags

The Summer 2026 edition of our newsletter Quaker Concern is out now!

Truth and reconciliation: Quakers and reparations

By Rachel Yordy and Jeremy Vander Hoek

We’ve released a rich new document for non-Indigenous Quakers and others who are looking to move from words to action on reconciliation. The rest of this article is excerpts from the resource. We encourage you to read the whole thing:

https://QuakerService.ca/Reparations

Learning the truth

Maybe you’re at the start of the journey and aren’t sure where to begin. Our list starts with learning as a basis for reconciliation action. As settlers, we cannot begin to work in collaboration and cooperation with Indigenous Peoples towards reconciliation if we are ignorant of the historic and ongoing harms of colonialism.

It is important to listen to Indigenous voices and read Indigenous authors who share their experiences of colonization to understand more about its impacts and the strength and resilience of Indigenous Peoples. Indigenous Peoples have been practicing their laws and cultures since time immemorial and resisting colonization for many generations… Keep reading ››

Canadian Mennonite University students use a draft CFSC resource on alternatives to policing to make and present displays, Feb, 2026

“Who should we call?”: what if safety didn’t begin with police?

By Karen Ridd

This article is the first in a two-part series on the limits of policing and the promise of alternatives.

I grew up in a middle-class, white, well-educated household in a quiet urban neighbourhood. My family, school, and the entire society around me (especially TV shows) taught me that if you’re in trouble, you should turn to the police. They’re your friends. I expect many of you reading this article can resonate with that mentality.

It wasn’t until I was doing human rights work in Central America (with CFSC partner Peace Brigades International) that the first cracks in this myth started to appear to me. During the civil wars of the 1980s, police forces in places such as El Salvador and Guatemala were simply part of the larger security apparatus involved in arresting, torturing and “disappearing” people, displacing communities, and surveilling and even executing activists. I started to take notice of their presence at all times, to be on high alert if they were near. Indeed, when I was arrested and detained, they took me to the Treasury Police torture centre. I began to think, “Police are not always your friends.”... Keep reading ››

From the General Secretary’s desk

By Jennifer Preston

I am writing from Winnipeg, Treaty One territory and homeland of the Red River Métis. CFSC has lots going on at the annual gathering of Quakers from across the country. One thing is we’re celebrating 95 years of CFSC! As part of our celebration evening Lisa Bowden, who you might know from our Unshackled video series (https://QuakerService.ca/Unshackled) lead us in a beading workshop. This week, in addition to discussions on our substantive work in several areas, we have a proposed minute for the business meeting committing the national Quaker body to financial reparations to Indigenous Peoples. More on this in our new resource

https://QuakerService.ca/Reparations

CFSC had some new tee-shirts printed here at Red Rebel Armour, a local Indigenous business. The shirts say “Stand Firm, Stay Peaceful.” Contact us to order yours for $25 plus shipping.

Sarah Bear has been hired as the CFSC’s Indigenous Rights Program Coordinator. We’re super excited to have her on our team, and you will be hearing from her in our next edition of Quaker Concern. In mid-August she will be joining myself and other program staff members on a road trip to visit and learn from our Cree partners in Eeyou Istchee. Follow CFSC on Facebook and Instagram if you’d like to follow our trip… Keep reading ››

Mel at the United Nations in New York

Friends on the move

Peace Program Coordinator Mel Burns delivered a peace education workshop in Montreal, an intergenerational creative nonviolence/craftivism workshop at Atlantic Half Yearly Meeting in Prince Edward Island, and was a Quaker United Nations delegate at the first annual UN peacebuilding week in New York.

We’re celebrating 95 years of peace and social justice work! To kick our birthday party off, Sandra Wiens was in Burnaby, British Columbia for a film screening of long-time CFSC partner Katsi’tsakwas Ellen Gabriel’s award-winning documentary When the pine needles fall followed by a discussion with CFSC partner Haana Edenshaw about her Indigenous rights activism.

Sandra then visited Western Half Yearly Meeting in Sorrento, BC where she spoke about CFSC’s work and engaged Friends in a discussion of the film The third harmony, about the topic of active nonviolence. Sandra and Mel also attended and supported the protests of CANSEC in Ottawa alongside various Friends... Keep reading for more short updates on CFSC’s recent travels ››

You can also download Quaker Concern in PDF.

All donors to CFSC get the option of a free subscription to Quaker Concern in print. Please donate now to support justice and peace and receive Quaker Concern as our thank you gift!