Budget to Build 2021 project

The Budget to Build 2021 (#budgettobuild) project has landed.

Budget to Build 2021 is a request for the inclusion of a budget line for capacity -building grants for Black-led community-based organizations in British Columbia. The project is a way for the province to meaningfully recognize the International Decade for People of African Descent (IDPAD) and support COVID-19 recovery efforts in the Province. Budget to Build 2021 would support community groups and nonprofits doing vital work on the ground in their communities.

The IDPAD is an international initiative to promote and protect human rights, and proclaim the "recognition, justice and development" of people of African descent. In 2018, the federal government formally recognized the Decade and allocated $25M in funding, and last year made $221 million dollars of funding available for Black-owned businesses as a part of their commitment to support Black communities. However, B.C.’s grassroots organizations are not eligible to receive that funding because they are unable to meet the capacity and staffing requirements. We need provincial support in order to build capacity. 

There are many Black-led organizations in the Province providing COVID recovery work in the way of food security programs, mental health support, affordable housing programs, career counseling, financial planning and more. Groups doing this work have no stable source of funding from the Province in order to expand.The Support Network for Indigenous Women and Women of Color (SNIWWOC) is a good example of this: the organization has provided almost 60 Covid-care packages (which include food, medicine and feminine hygiene products) to quarantined BIPOC women but this number could be much higher if given the resources and (wo)manpower to expand. 

The data shows that BIPOC communities have been impacted more harshly than others, and for this reason require specialized recovery support. Race-based data from cities like Toronto, Ottawa and Edmonton show that Black Canadians are far more likely to get sick and be hospitalized for COVID-19 over other ethnic groups. For example Black people and other people of colour make up 83 per cent of reported COVID-19 cases while only making up half of Toronto's population, according to the latest data from the city. There are links to types of employment, like front-line positions, and to lower income, which increases food insecurity and poorer health outcomes.  

For these reasons, there is no better way to support the meaningful implementation of the IDPAD than by investing in the community that has been hit the hardest by COVID-19. We are asking for a line in the 2021 budget that is dedicated to funding Black-led organizations in B.C who can do the work on the ground to reach community members that are in need of support. 

We recognize that there is less than one month until Budget Day. But Black-led organizations in B.C. like the African Arts and Culture Community Contributor Society ( AACCCS) have advocated for recognition of the IDPAD since 2017. There are only three years left in the Decade. It is critical now more than ever to apply sustainable funding for B.C.’s Black-led organizations by adopting the recommendation of the Budget to Build 2021 project and taking this important step to implementing the IDPAD in a meaningful way.