JFS Ottawa

Sincerest condolences to Franca’s family and work colleagues. Franca was such a strong advocate for women and families needing support.

A powerful example of how our community agencies can help support those vulnerable to hate and racism and also work to prevent unconscious bias from among service providers themselves: Ottawa’s Jewish Family Services have incorporated anti-oppression and anti-racism frameworks in their comprehensive guide for settlement and frontline workers. This is an organization with a long history of supporting Muslim newcomers to Canada, including Somali and Syrian refugees. In 2022, their incredibly diverse staff supported almost 3,600 newcomers from 10 countries, in Arabic, Cantonese, Dari, Farsi, French, German, Hebrew, Mandarin, Russian, Somali, Taiwanese, Ukrainian and Urdu. Big thanks to Sarah Caspi, Andrea Gardner, and Lamia Al-Ansari for sharing with me and for their openness to share with other agencies and institutions across Canada.