Set It Off Girls Group is ‘true YCF experience’

Black Action Defense Committee

When youth from the Black Action Defence Committee (BADC) applied to YCF to fund the Freedom Cipher initiative, their vision was to bring together former gang members and street-involved youth in the west-end priority neighbourhoods. The aim was to re-engage with their communities through hip-hop and basketball programs. 

While it was successful at reaching young racialized males, several girls in the group identified it was not an effective group for them. They noticed a movement emerging in the community to empower females, which needed support to grow. BADC quickly adapted programming to create the Set It Off Girls Group.

Set It Off provides leadership opportunities for young women living in Jane-Finch and Lawrence Heights. The program was established in October 2007, with one group based in a Lawrence Heights high school. It has since grown rapidly, with two other Set It Off groups forming at schools in Jane-Finch and Oakwood.

YCF provides funding, ongoing mentorship and support to the initiative, which brings young women together weekly to discuss relevant issues, such as violence and identity, and ways to effectively address them. They organize workshops that help them build knowledge and skills.

The connections made through the program are particularly important. Youth from Lawrence Heights have a history of conflict and rivalry with youth from Jane-Finch. Set It Off brings these communities together often for special events and enrichment activities. In working together, the girls realize they have more in common than they thought. As a result, Set It Off is reducing feelings of hostility and segregation between young women, which has a ripple effect on the two communities as the girls bring new perspectives to their own peer groups.

Set It Off continues to grow and evolve. The group has become a leading partner in the YCF-funded Young Women’s Collaborative, which brings together young women from across the city to build the leadership capacity of their peers. It reflects YCF’s priority to fund sustainable, youth-led initiatives that will leave a lasting legacy in the community. 

Since day one, Set It Off has embodied the true YCF experience. It was created as a result of listening to youth and responding to their needs. It was implemented through youth engagement at the grassroots level. And now it is living on through collaborative partnerships, new friendships and the voices of strong female leaders.