The AWCM wishes to keep our members and supporters informed about what we have been up to this past fall. We thank you all for your continuous support and for helping us in our mission of improving the lives of racialized immigrant women in Quebec society and by extension, our community as a whole. We have so many things planned over the course of the next couple of months, and we cannot wait for you to participate in our Upcoming Events.

20TH ANNIVERSARY

We are thrilled to announce that the Afghan Women’s Centre of Montreal is turning 20 years old! We will be celebrating twenty years of serving our members and community. Twenty years of providing essential services and programs to women of diverse backgrounds. Twenty years of alleviating the unique barriers that racialized immigrant women face when transitioning to a new country.

We thank our members, funders, and partners for making this possible. We invite each and every one of you to attend our 20th anniversary for an evening of celebration of our successes and achievements with the testimonies of unique and world-changing speakers, appreciation, live music, a fashion show, the exhibition of the Afghan mosaic and absolutely delicious afghan cuisine as we celebrate the 20th anniversary of our hardworking community in this monumental ceremony for our community.

When: Saturday, December 10, 2022 from 6 PM to 10 PM
Where: 3040 Rue Sherbrooke O, Montréal, QC H3Z 1A4
Metro Access: Atwater

-Registration required-

Please fill the form below to confirm your attendance:

We look forward to seeing you all there!

With love,

The AWCM Team

Female Power Event

On October 25, We had the pleasure to not only attend The Talisman Theater's FEMALE POWER event, but also to speak about our organization, mission, and programs and showcase some of our handicrafts to honour female rights and empowerment.

Exchanging Ideas for Our 20th Anniversary

On October 27, our members joined us as we sat down to brainstorm and exchange ideas about our upcoming 20TH ANNIVERSARY EVENT on December 10.

Finally, During our October 27 session, while we discussed our 20th anniversary, we ate delicious afghan cuisine, mantu and bolani, prepared by our long-term member and Cancer survivor, Nazanin.

Concordia Volunteer Fair

On October 19, Concordia University invited us to be one of the forty community partners at Concordia’s LIVE Centre Volunteer Fair. It was a great opportunity for us to meet with representatives from other community organizations, and have face to face chats with various people about our work and how they can get involved.

Mental Health Relief Session

 On September 16, members of our community gathered together to reflect on mental health relief. This particular session unified and provided spiritual support, prayers, and hope to relieve the pain felt during the time of grievance for those members who lost their loved ones.

Hear my Voice Event

The Montreal Council of Women (MCW) empowers all women to work together towards improving the quality of life for women, families, and society through its membership of autonomous federated societies and individuals.

This webinar, on November 10, will be an in-depth conversation between MCW and AWC. It will cover the concerns, challenges and issues that refugees and newcomers face and the trauma of leaving their homes and families behind.

We will also be discussing our humanitarian and emergency aid initiative for Afghan women as well as our current efforts in working with the Ministry of Immigration, Francisation et Intégration Quebec to help others find refuge in Canada.

We look forward to fostering safe, educational spaces to speak about our community’s challenges, concerns, and issues.

We hope to see you all there!

Keep up to date about our events, services, and for the month activities! 

info-session with Montreal's Fire Department

On October 04, The City of Montreal's fire department joined us at our centre to provide us with crucial life-saving information on emergency procedures and safe evacuation of fires.

AWCM In the Press

On October 7th, our Executive Director, Victoria Jahesh, sat with Sudha Krishna from CBC News concerning the Global Vigil in solidarity with Afghan and Iranian Women's Rights. This event was organized by a student group, the Coalition of Iranian Human Rights McGill, where our president and founder, Makai Harif and Victoria Jahesh, were invited to speak. Click here to watch the full interview.

Collective Kitchen

We held two Collective Kitchen Sessions, one on September 16 and one on October 04.

The Collective Kitchen was created to empower women in our communities by creating a safe space for our members to share their skills, learn, and support one another.

Events

Les Quartes Saisons Event

We were blissful to begin fall at Les Grand Ballets Canadiens de Montreal on September 22, to the sound of Vivaldi’s great Four Seasons and Beethoven’s 7th Symphony.

The exceptionally talented German choreographer Uwe Scholz signed one of his masterworks on a piece that Richard Wagner described as "the apotheosis of the dance.” With remarkable musicality, these ballets on pointe, as finely cut as a diamond, swept away everything in their path.

With these luminous pieces, choreographers Mauro Bigonzetti and Uwe Sholz dare the impossible and take up the enormous challenge of expressing something new through these famous classical pieces. Mauro Bigonzetti drew out the internal seasons of Man in all his moods and swings.
 

We are grateful for the opportunity to attend the “Les Quatre Saisons” spectacle and have the chance to greet autumn with our members in such a memorable and unique way!

Femmes du Monde’s 25th Anniversary

On September 23rd, we had the honour to be a part of the 25th anniversary of the Femmes du Monde à Côte-des-Neiges, a women’s center whose mission is to provide a meeting place, solidarity, and mutual assistance. We are happy that we got to attend the celebrations of a great legacy campaigning to inform and raise awareness about the living conditions of women and defend their rights. We share a common vision of promoting the integration of all women in the community and encouraging citizen participation.

Financial Workshop

Children’s Future Planning

On September 28th, our generous partner, TD Bank Group, held a financial literacy workshop. This workshop provided our members and other participants with vital information about the Registered Education Saving Plan (RESP), encouraging them to start their journey of financial security and invest in their children’s future. We thank TD for consistently putting essential financial workshops, benefiting you no matter where you are in your financial journey.

La Soirée des Étoiles

On October 13th, we were both honoured and filled with joy that we had the opportunity to attend La Soiree Des Etoiles with the District of Ville Marie. We thank Mayor Valerie Plante and the City of Montreal for inviting us to such a beautiful evening that recognized and highlighted the volunteer commitment of individuals and organizations.

Keep up to date for our December Activities!

WE ARE HIRING!

The AWCM is looking for motivated individuals willing to work for racialized immigrant women. Please send your resume to info@awcm.ca or through our LinkedIn posting.

​​Full-time, 30h/week contract.

OUR IDEAL CANDIDATE

- Understands copywriting and has the skills to prove it

- Understands social media strategies

- Can develop content written and visual

- Proficient in graphic desgin

- Will participate in the curation and development of our brand image on all written content

-Has exceptional organizational skills, detail oriented and capable of managing multiple projects while respecting deadlines

REQUIREMENTS

- Experience working in non profit sector an asset

- Experience in office administration is a requirement

- Previous experience in social media (primarily Instagram and Facebook)

- Excellent writing and analytical skills

- Excellent knowledge of Microsoft Office and computer skills

- Bachelor's Degree in Political Science, Journalism, Gender Studies, International Studies, Communications and/or Marketing

- Speaks English and French

*Salary based on experience*

Our Services

All of our courses and workshops are offered for free to our members. Click here to learn more and sign up.

Afghan Resettlement News

New Special Sponsorship Program 

As of October 17, 2022, groups of five and community sponsors in Canada can sponsor Afghan refugees without submitting a refugee status determination (RSD) document. The Canadian government is said to be accepting 3000 new applicants for this program, and applications will be accepted until October 17, 2023. Currently, Quebec is not included in this program.

Click here for detailed information about the temporary public policy.