Description
Anduhyaun Inc. is a not-for-profit, charitable agency founded to respond to the needs of Toronto's Indigenous women. It was first established in 1973 as a hostel. Over the last four decades, Anduhyaun Inc. has expanded to create culturally-inclusive, safe spaces for women and their children at various stages of life.
During the 1960’s there was a big push in the movement of understanding the abuses that women face, and it was clear that more support for women was needed. In 1968 the Ministry of Indian Affairs and the YWCA opened a hostel in Toronto to support Indigenous women, who were among the least recognized in society and facing multiple levels of abuse and oppression. A group of Indigenous women proposed that this hostel should also be managed by Indigenous women and this proposal became a reality. In 1973 a not-for-profit, charitable agency was created, known as Anduhyaun Incorporated, and the hostel became a place of support.
As Anduhyaun Inc. evolved, a supportive housing facility was seen as a necessary option to further support Indigenous women on their healing paths. Nekenaan Second Stage Housing opened its doors in 1995, as a stepping stone in supporting women and children.
Today the hostel is known as Anduhyaun Shelter and is Canada’s oldest emergency shelter for Indigenous women, where there is support and advocacy for women and children recovering from the traumas of violence. Anduhyaun Inc is a women run organization with Indigenous women and their allies as management, staff, and community partners. Working with the guidance from Anduhyaun’s Board of Directors, the goal is to continue fulfilling the agency’s mandate.
Location
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1296 Weston Rd, York, ON M6M 4R3, Canada
