Solidarity in Action: Building Community with Grassroots Youth

Midnight Kitchen's 'Lunch n Learn' series offers students and the public an opportunity to learn about community organizing, research, and projects while enjoying a delicious vegan lunch. On April 26th 2024 at 1pm, we are hosting Rising from Our Roots for a presentation on how young people can be a part of grassroots struggles. The event will take place in rm. 203 in the SSMU building.

Presentation Summary: We’d like to share a presentation about how as marginalized youth, we came to mobilize in our communities to show solidarity to others experiencing unstable housing and mental health issues. We want to provide a blueprint on how to start your own grassroots organization and show youth and other community members just how accessible it is to do so. We have been running park meals and donation drives for encampment tenants at Allan Gardens and Moss park since 2021 to redistribute essential resources and food to those communities, as well as foster a stronger community with the tenants and fellow youth who come to volunteer. Though we have worked our way to receiving multiple grants in the past year to support our work, we started off running our park meals with food collected from the foodbank and our pantries, donations collected from our closets and friends, and meals cooked in our homes. We started the park meals because we wanted to bridge the gap in the support system for encampment tenants and show up for them as a real community. With this presentation, we will give a team introduction, an overview of our work, and we will share tips on how to reach out to partner with local organizations, apply for grants, and find online resources to support your work. We want to show people that it is possible for anyone with the passion to get involved with grassroots work.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

3480 R McTavish room 203, 3480 Rue McTavish, Montréal, Canada