Toronto’s Indigenous communities need help to keep a sacred fire burning at Allan Gardens.

In 2021, the Toronto Indigenous Harm Reduction group built the park’s first teepee to provide a hub for the city’s Indigenous people. In Oct. 2022, the City of Toronto designated this site as one of three places for First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples to hold sacred fires for healing and gathering.

Access to a sacred fire is a right for Indigenous people supported by the City of Toronto’s Reconciliation Action Plan and the Calls to Action in Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s report and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

For four years, Allan Gardens’ Indigenous Cultural Space around the teepees and sacred fire have been a place of refuge and connection, where Indigenous people can access community support and cultural practices. It’s also been a space for unhoused people to get help securing a home. 

With the cold months on our doorstep, a local community member, Morningstar Mishibinijima-Bisson, posted a callout for donations, asking for firewood, blankets, sleeping bags, warm clothing and fuel to keep the space running. The post reads, “Mutual aid is how we care for one another. Nobody should have to face Toronto winter without warmth, shelter or community.”

If you’d like to help, you can drop off donations in person at Allan Gardens’ Indigenous space, near the Gerrard Street East and Pembroke Street intersection. You can also e-transfer donations to morningstarmishibinijima@gmail.com. Toronto Indigenous Harm Reduction also regularly shared ways the broader community can support mutual aid calls through Instagram.

To learn more about the practices and importance of sacred fires for Toronto’s Indigenous communities, check this article from The Green Line’s archive: Why Indigenous fire-keepers want to spread their sacred flame across Toronto.