Hi friends and neighbours,

Hundreds of students from across Ontario converged at Queen's Park this past Tuesday to defend their education, and it seems like protest season is just getting started. This upcoming Saturday, there's dozens of province-wide protests against the Ford government and their sheer impunity, from corruption scandals to selling off our environmental heritage to curtailing free speech and protecting themselves from being investigated for their blatant cronyism. Join the one at Queen's Park on Saturday, and tell your friends and family from around Ontario about the ones in their municipalities as well.

Just in time for the provincial parliament reconvening this week, a coalition of labour, education, environment, and community groups have released a great dashboard tracking $36 billion-with-a-B of documented misspending by this government since 2018. (And this is just the stuff that’s documented! Imagine what we’d know if local journalism hadn’t been decimated by decades of tech exploitation and elite capture.) The press release from OPSEU is worth reading, and the actual dashboard can be found at ItsOnFord.ca. All this is missing is a category for “petty grievances against Toronto specifically because he’s still throwing extended tantrum over losing the mayoralty”.

Another cool tool that was released this week is a timeline highlighting 60 years of migrant worker struggle and resistance in Canada from the Migrant Workers’ Alliance for Change. I always appreciate projects like this that help clarify and make sense of the complex context of an issue. I know they take a tremendous amount of effort and are often not given enough time in the limelight, so go check it out!

Finally, if you subscribed to the newsletter in the last week or so, I’d love to know how you heard about it. Hit reply and let me know.

Thank you for showing up.

Jenny

Events this week

Thursday, March 26, 2026 🔗

12PM — Rally at Queen's Park: Don't Bulldoze Our Future - Save Our Land and Water (Queen’s Park)
Grandmothers Act to Save the Planet - As Queen's Park session opens again, rally together with your fellow environmentalists to remind the current government about the immense damage to land and water that their legislation and policies are causing. Bring signs, noise makers, and a friend!

5:30PM — Phone Bank for School Meals (Virtual)
Progress Toronto - Mayor Chow and Toronto City Council have voted to expand school meals, but to feed all students, the Ford government must match the city’s investment. Join Progress Toronto in calling residents across the city to help them tell the Ford government to fund school meals!

6PM — CivicTechBrampton: Technologists for Democracy (8 Queen St E, Brampton)
CivicTechBrampton - Smart Billboards that are watching us? Autonomous vehicles with pedestrian facial recognition? What cna we do about it? ​Inviting all technologists, students, and citizens interested in working on Democracy, Surveillance and Civic Tech projects.

6PM — Abolition Pub-Ed: Community Justice Initiatives (Virtual)
Disability Justice Network of Ontario - A restorative justice 101 overview, building a foundational understanding of how it works in practice. Explore how referrals come into Community Justice Initiatives, what case flow looks like, and how participants’ healing and justice needs can be supported in meaningful ways.

6PM — Wage Theft Panel (Virtual)
Workers’ Action Centre - Join WAC for an online session at the George Brown Labour Fair, co-sonspored by Brock’s Department of Labour Studies. This panel will bring together real stories, research and insights into how you can stand up against unfair pay practices.

6PM — Bill 33 & the School—Prison Nexus (Virtual)
Women’s Health in Women’s Hands - A political education teach-in and knowledge mobilizer where Andrea Vásquez Jiménez will be delving into the landscape and terrains of policing-in-schools with a focus on Ontario Bill 33, its entrenchment of the School—Prison Nexus and the detrimental impacts on Black girls and gender non-conforming Black youth.

6:30PM — Ontario Budget Watch Party and Townhall (Virtual)
OPSEU - Join the Worth Fighting For campaign to watch the budget release live, talk about what it means for workers in Ontario, and hold the government accountable for meeting the demands of millions of Ontarians who rely on community and social services.

6:30PM — Global Solidarity: Why is Palestine a Labour Issue? (Sidney Smith 2105)
CUPE 3902 BDS Caucus - Join this session at the 21st Israeli Apartheid Week for a panel discussion on “Global Labour Solidarity: Why is Palestine a Labour Issue?”

7:30PM — Making Room: History of Homebuilding (It’s OK* Studios)
More Neighbours Toronto - ​Join historian Hana Suckstorff, PhD as we travel back in time to the early 20th century to explore the roots of, and possible solutions to Toronto's present housing problems.

Friday, March 27, 2026 🔗

9AM — Better Medicare Health Summit (58 Cecil St)
Canadian Doctors for Medicare - Explore the future of Medicare in Canada, scalable solutions to transform primary care, the growing risks posed by for-profit care and the private insurance industry, public solutions to address health care wait times, the importance of enforcing the Canada Health Act, and much more.

9AM — Seniors for Climate Action Now Day of Action (Various)
Seniors for Climate Action Now - Join Senior for Climate Action Now’s Community Resilience and Resistance Campaign! On March 27th, attend an MP office gathering (there are 7 in Toronto!), call/write your MP, or write for your community newspaper to call on Canada to change direction on climate action.

12PM — Rally for Refugee Health Care (1202 Bloor St W)
No Cuts to Care - The federal government is planning cuts to refugee healthcare starting May 1, 2026. Join healthcare providers and community members to urgently call on the government to reverse the cuts to the Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP) refugee healthcare coverage. Bring your co-worker, your neighbourhood group, your friends.

3PM — Fridays 4 Palestine (Yonge and Bloor)
Fridays4Palestine - Come show your support for Palestinians every Friday at the Israel Consulate. Stand up for human rights and say no to genocide.

6:30PM — Our America: Beyond “Latin” America “and” The Caribbean (Available upon registration)
LACSN, CSN, and Latinx4palestine - A conversation with Nelson Maldonado-Torrese to connect struggles in the Latin America and Caribbean region. As military intervention, economic blockade, and imperialist ambition loom over the region, it is necessary to recover the radical traditions of resistance of the Greater Caribbean.

6:30PM — Quebec 2012: How a Student Strike Brought Down the Government (285 Victoria St, Room VIC-608)
Revolutionary Communist Party Toronto - In 2012, Quebec students went on a months-long strike to reverse a planned 75 per cent tuition increase. It ended with the fall of the provincial government and the cancellation of the tuition hike. Come learn how this movement was able to win, and how students can build a movement just like it today.

Saturday, March 28, 2026 🔗

9AM — Unity in Struggle Forum (Available upon registration (downtown))
Unity in Struggle Forum - The Unity in Struggle Forum brings people together to strengthen solidarity, share knowledge from struggles across the world, and collectively imagine what liberation can look like. Rooted in shared learning and action, this forum is about building power together.

9AM — Parkdale Day (Parkdale)
Project Parkdale - Parkdale Day marks the anniversary of Parkdale’s annexation to the City of Toronto on March 23, 1889. More than a century later, the day brings together local businesses, artists, and community members to celebrate the neighbourhood as it exists today. Events including 5 markets, live music, walking tours, discounts, food specials, art shows and more!

10AM — Spring Tenant School (Hybrid)
Federation of Metro Tenants’ Associations - Tenants and Tenant Association leaders in Toronto are welcome to come to the Tenant School later, an intensive training with classes taught by lawyers and community advocates. Learn about your rights under the law, meet other tenant leaders and strategize to take action against bad landlords!

10AM — Virtual Tech Worker’s Coalition Coffee (Virtual)
Tech Worker’s Coalition Canada - Drop by for a virtual coffee hour on Sunday mornings to chat with fellow tech workers about what’s on your mind and to learn more about the Tech Worker’s Coalition. TWC considers anyone who is involved in the production and maintenance of digital technology to be a tech worker, whether you are a bike courier working at a food delivery app service, a designer, a software engineer, a product owner, a data labeller or a content moderator. Hope to see you there!

10AM — Downtown Toronto Seedy Saturday (Scadding Court Community Centure)
Scadding Court Community Centure - For more htan 20 years, Scadding Court's Seedy Saturday has been helping people in and around downtown to plant seeds that lead to flourishing gardens. Whether you’re planting your first seed or your 50th, you’re welcome here. Let’s grow something together.

10AM — Great Ride of Return Toronto (Queen’s Park)
Great Ride of Return Toronto - Join bike protests across Canada in solidarity with the Gaza Sunbirds. Ride with hearts full of hope for a free Palestine and a safe and peaceful tomorrow.

11AM — Community Drive for a family in Gaza (Trinity Bellwoods)
Spadina-Fort York 4 Palestine - A Community Drive to raise funds for a family in Gaza. Drop by for baked goods, homemade crats, and more! Connect with your neighbours and support a family in need.

11AM — Community Drive for a family in Gaza (David Crombie Park)
Toronto Centre 4 Palestine - A Community Drive to raise funds for a family in Gaza. Drop by for baked goods, homemade crats, and more! Connect with your neighbours and support a family in need.

11:30AM — International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discriminationn Rally (Dentonia Park)
Toronto East Anti-Hate Mobilization and others - A rising climate of hate- racism, Islamophobia and antisemitism- threatens the safety and unity of our communities. Refuse division and stand together in solidarity, not hate – join a coalition of anti-racist organizations in rallying for a city rooted in justice, dignity and collective care.

12PM — Reclaiming the Right to Learn: Student Projects from Gaza (Available upon registration)
SPOCs for Gaza - In the face of ongoing bombardment, starvation, and scholasticide, students in Gaza persevere. Over two semesters, SPOCs for Gaza build a virtual learning space committed to educational reparations. Come immerse yourself in final projects made by students in Gaza.

12PM — Fight Ford Protest Provice-wide Action (111 Wellesley)
Ontario Protest - Our province is reaching a breaking point. From OSAP Cuts to healthcare privatization to the greenbelt to our freedom of information: enough is enough. Join one of the dozens of protests province-wide to demand our future back.

12PM — Paper Jam: A Zine Fair (292 Brunswick Ave)
Toronto Zine Library - Come celebrate Toronto Zine Library’s 20th anniversary with live zine readings, exclusive merch, and more! Paper Jam is TZL’s annual fair and this year the whole Tranzac Club is booked in celebration. PWYC!

1PM — Volunteer for Renters’ Rights (Islington Station)
Progress Toronto - Doug Ford’s government passed new legislation (Bill 60) that makes it easier for landlords to evict renters and make finding an affordable place to live even harder. Join Progress Toronto in knocking on doors inside rental buildings across Toronto to make sure Ford still feels the pressure for his threats to renters.

1PM — BDS Leafletting (900 Dufferin St)
Davenport 4 Palestine - Join Davenport 4 Palestine for the weekly BDS leafleting campaign at Dufferin Mall. Meet outside south entrance and buddy up – no experience necessary!

1PM — A Climate Roundtable (611 St Clair Ave W)
The Wards Project - An opportunity for community members to come together and discuss the climate-related concerns most affecting Toronto-St. Paul's. Explore how to access city services related to climate impacts, identify community priorities, and participate in a Q&A.

2PM — PALS Workshop – Data into Action for Palestine (Virtual)
Palestine Impact Collective - A collaborative, Virtual Brainstorm Workshop to build a mutual aid network designed by advocates, for advocates. Where your career isn't on the line for standing with what's right! Come brainstorm how to turn data into actionable projects.

2PM — Hands Off Al-Aqsa Protest (Nathan Philips Square)
Liberate Forty-Eight - Stand agains the destruction of one of the holiest sites in Islam, Al-Aqsa, and protest its senseless destruction. This action also commemorates Land Day, a day that honours the Palestinian people’s connection to their land and their steadfastness in struggle against occupation, displacement and colonialism.

2:30PM — Pedestrian Memorial Installation (King and Massey)
Friends and Families for Safe Streets - Join Friends and Families for Safe Streets to install a pedestrian memorial sign in memory of Gigi Behocaray, beloved mother and friend struck and killed by a pickup truck driver last week. Her family and community are devastated, please join to honour her memory and show her family that they are not alone.

Sunday, March 29, 2026 🔗

11AM — Gaza Square (371 Wallace Ave)
Davenport 4 Palestine - Daveport 4 Palestine invites you to come hang out at Gaza square on Sunday mornings with hot chocolate and coffee, buttons and posters, lawn signs and colourful chalk. Come say hi and meet your fellow neighbours/organizers as they make their presence known and continue to build safety in their community!

11AM — Sundays 4 Palestine (Bathurst and Sheppard)
Sundays4Palestine - Weekly counterprotest to the Zionist community that comes out to celebrate the ongoing genocide in Palestine. Flags and signs provided.

1PM — Rally for Cuba (361 University)
Canadian-Cuban Friendship Association Toronto - This monthly rally in solidarity with Cuba and against the US genocidal blockade seeks to unite all people who love and want to show solidarity with Cuba, as well as demonstrate to the imperialists that the people of Canada stand with the Cuban people and their Revolution.

1PM — Auntie Fashion Dance Troupe Community Art Build (Sublunar Community Space)
Auntie Fashion Dance Troupe - An afternoon of creativity, connection, and community building while preparing together for future joyful public actions. Bring art supplies, clothes or totes to print on, ingredient-labelled potluck snacks, and friends who want to be part of the magic.

3PM — Tenant Organizing Training (Virtual)
Democratic Socialists of Canada - Come learn practical skills you can immediately use to start organizing your neighbours and other tenants in your city. Learn how to prepare for a campaign, chart a building, develop a power analysis, have effective conversations with your neighbours to build community and solidarity, and more.

3PM — Migrant Workers: 60 Years of Struggle for Status for All (Virtual)
Migrant Rights Network - As part of Farmworker Awareness Week, join migrant workers, organizers, historians, and allies from across the country to mark 60 years since the creation of the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP) and hear from migrant worker leaderes speaking for themselves about how labour connects to food sovereignty, affordability, and food insecurity.

Monday, March 30, 2026 🔗

8:30AM — Rally with Grassy Narrows (Fairmont Royal York)
Grassy Narrows Solidairty - While Premier Ford meets with municipal leaders attending the “Good Roads Conference” at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel, Grassy Narrows leadership, community members and allies will be there to bring their call for justice directly to him so he cannot ignore them. Demand Premier Ford compensate for decades of mercury poisoning!

12:30PM — Weekly Phone Zap for Palestine (Virtual)
Toronto Zaps For Palestine - Join with organizers from coast to coast in calling, emailing, and faxing demands to elected officials for a full two-way arms embargo to stop Canada's complicity in the genocide.

6PM — Volunteer for Renters’ Rights (Kennedy Station)
Progress Toronto - Doug Ford’s government passed new legislation (Bill 60) that makes it easier for landlords to evict renters and make finding an affordable place to live even harder. Join Progress Toronto in knocking on doors inside rental buildings across Toronto to make sure Ford still feels the pressure for his threats to renters.

7PM — Living with Drones - Scarborough (UTSC AC Lecture Theatre)
stitched! Live Journalism - An interactive live journalism show about the devastating and traumatic impacts of Israel’s use of drones in the besieged Gaza strip. All proceeds from ticket sales for this performance will be donated to PSSAR (Palestinian Students and Scholars at Risk) to support more students from Gaza in securing fully-funded opportunities for graduate studies in Canada.

7PM — Phone Zap for Refugee Health Care (Virtual)
Migrant Rights Network - The federal government is planning cuts to refugee healthcare starting May 1, 2026. Join the Migrant Rights Network, Canadian Council for Refugees, and Canadian Refugee Health Network for a Phone Zap & Webinar to say NO to cuts to refugee health care!

Tuesday, March 31, 2026 🔗

11AM — Monthly Clothing Drive (550 Queen ST E)
Black CAP - Whether you’re looking to refresh your wardrobe or need some seasonal essentials, Black CAP has you covered with new and gently used clothing and accessories.

1PM — Webinar Addressing the Housing Crisis (Virtual)
Canadian Labour Congress - Hear from Lisa Freeman, Canadian Labour Congress’s Senior Researcher and in-house expert housing, and Michèle Biss, Executive Director of the National Right to Housing Network about the housing crisis and how the federal government is addressing it.

2PM — Public Launch: Cool by Design (Dialog)
The Bentway - Come celebrate Cool By Design, The Bentway’s recently released report that brings together interdisciplinary perspectives to explore the vital role of shade in public spaces and examines how design, culture, and community engagement can help rapidly warming northern cities respond to heat.

7PM — LNG: Not In Our National Interest Campaign Launch (Virtual)
Stand Earth - A new national campaign to pressure PM Carney and his key ministers to stop the government from giving billions more of our taxpayer money to dirty energy megaprojects that only benefit foreign billionaires. Join to hear from movement leaders and experts on why LNG export projects are not in our national interest.

7PM — Fund Our Schools In-Person Town Hall (18 Wynford Dr)
Fund Our Schools - As a student, parent, caregiver, educator, or community member, what do you want our publicly funded schools to look like? Let's shape our community together!

7PM — Civic Meetup – Organizing for Civic Technology (Hybrid)
Civic Tech Toronto - Civic Tech Toronto's weekly meetups bring together Torontonians who want to improve the city through design, tech, and data. This week, hear from Ilya Kreynin about what civic tech projects can learn from organizing and its principles. Followed by project breakout sessions.

Wednesday, April 1, 2026 🔗

10AM — Beach Cleanup – Unsmoke Butt Blitz (Marie Curtis Park)
A Greener Future - Join communities across Canada to collect 1 million cigarette butts to build a real park bench through TerraCycle. By joining this cleanup, you’re not just removing toxic litter from the environment; you’re helping turn pollution into something lasting, useful, and public.

12PM — 2026 Ontario Budget review and sense-making session (Virtual)
Ontario Nonprofit Network - After an extended break, the Ontario Legislature is returning in late March, and the 2026 Ontario Budget is expected to be released by the end of the month. During this session, ONN alongside panelists will analyze the budget, providing insights and clarifying impacts on, and opportunities for, nonprofits across the province.

12PM — Phone Zap for Refugee Health Care (Virtual)
Migrant Rights Network - The federal government is planning cuts to refugee healthcare starting May 1, 2026. Join the Migrant Rights Network, Canadian Council for Refugees, and Canadian Refugee Health Network for a Phone Zap & Webinar to say NO to cuts to refugee health care!

5PM — Wednesdays 4 Palestine (Danforth and Pape)
Wednesdays 4 Palestine - Every Wednesday afternoon in East Toronto. Flags and signs are provided.

5:15PM — Doorknocking for Palestine (Available upon RSVP)
Davenport 4 Palestine - Davenport 4 Palestine is doorknocking in the neighbourhood to mobilize neighbours in support of a real arms embargo. No experience is necessary, you'll be paired up with a seasoned doorknocker. RSVP by emailing at davenport4palestine@gmail.com.

5:30PM — Bikechain Volunteer Orientation (Bikechain, 230 College St)
Bikechain U of T - Bikechain is an educational bicycle repair space serving the University of Toronto and the public, offering a variety of free services to students. Come learn more about volunteering at Bikechain – no experience required.

6:30PM — Activism & Mental Health: Capitalism Can’t Be Fixed (Virtual)
Socialist Project - Every Wednesday from March 25 to May 13, join Dr. James Deutsch and the Socialist Project for a new political education series on activism and mental health. Capitalism can’t be fixed!

6:30PM — Trans 4 Toronto Fundraiser Show (Houndstooth)
Trans 4 Toronto - A benefit event with all proceeds going towards local trans community members in need of financial support! There will be music, cabaret, drag, and a skills library featuring everything from meal prep to mental health care to herbalism. Show up for your community!

Thursday, April 2, 2026 🔗

1PM — Dufferin Grove Cleanup – Unsmoke Butt Blitz (Dufferin Grove Park)
A Greener Future - Join communities across Canada to collect 1 million cigarette butts to build a real park bench through TerraCycle. By joining this cleanup, you’re not just removing toxic litter from the environment; you’re helping turn pollution into something lasting, useful, and public.

6PM — CivicTechBrampton: Civic Dashboard (8 Queen St E, Brampton)
CivicTechBrampton - ​Can citizens understand local issues without a PhD in Political Science? Can we present municipal information in a way that is understandable by all citizens? Inviting all technologists, students, and citizens interested in working on Democracy, and Civic projects.

6PM — Volunteer for Renters’ Rights (Forest Hill Station)
Progress Toronto - Doug Ford’s government passed new legislation (Bill 60) that makes it easier for landlords to evict renters and make finding an affordable place to live even harder. Join Progress Toronto in knocking on doors inside rental buildings across Toronto to make sure Ford still feels the pressure for his threats to renters.

6PM — Abolition Pub-Ed: Voices for Unhoused Liberation (Virtual)
Disability Justice Network of Ontario - Voices for Unhoused Liberation (V4UL) is a group of activists and community members who who work to build power with unhoused community and confront the carceral shelter system in Tsi’tkoron:to, and will present the praxis they have developed for building community through doing out-reach, organizing campaigns, housing advocacy, and doing individual case-work.

7PM — PHP4P Community Meeting (Virtual)
Parkdale-High Park for Palestine - PH4P is hosting their next community meeting! Connect with your neighbors to discuss new and ongoing solidarity initiatives for Palestine in Parkdale - High Park. All are welcome - tell your neighbours and bring a friend!

Down the road

Friday, April 3, 2026 🔗

3PM — Fridays 4 Palestine (Yonge and Bloor)

Saturday, April 4, 2026 🔗

12PM — University-Spadina Seedy Saturday (230 College St)
12PM — SURJ Public Meeting (TMU)
1PM — BDS Leafletting (900 Dufferin St)

Sunday, April 5, 2026 🔗

10AM — Virtual Tech Worker’s Coalition Coffee (Virtual)
11AM — Gaza Square (371 Wallace Ave)
11AM — Sundays 4 Palestine (Bathurst and Sheppard)

Monday, April 6, 2026 🔗

6PM — Empires die, but the cedars remain (Hybrid)

Tuesday, April 7, 2026 🔗

7PM — DSC Orientation (Virtual)
6PM — High Park Movement Strategy Consultation (Virtual)

Wednesday, April 8, 2026 🔗

6:30PM — Activism & Mental Health: Capitalism Can’t Be Fixed (Virtual)

Thursday, April 9, 2026 🔗

6:30PM — Higher Education Organizing Meeting (College Street United)

Sunday, April 12, 2026 🔗

11AM — Mine-o-Polis: Playing Against Extraction (CONTACT Gallery)
1PM — Strong Towns Toronto’s Monthly Meeting (The 519)
2PM — TTCriders Book Club – Human Transit (CSI Spadina)

Wednesday, April 15, 2026 🔗

1PM — Approaches to Transforming Conflict into Opportunity (Virtual)
6:30PM — Activism & Mental Health: Capitalism Can’t Be Fixed (Virtual)

Thursday, April 16, 2026 🔗

10AM — Spring care kit drive (1377 Lawrence Ave. E, North York)
6PM — Scarborough: Know Your Rights At Work (The Hub)

For the full up-to-date event listing, visit the Show Up Toronto website. If you find this newsletter useful, I would love for you to:

• Forward it to a friend

• Tell me if you go to an event

• Send me other organizing events in the city I may have missed

You can reach me by replying directly, or by emailing organize@showuptoronto.ca.