10/01/2026
October marks Latin American Heritage Month in so-called Canada!
This month, we celebrate the cultures, histories, creativity and resistance of Latin American communities, whose voices and contributions shape our campuses, neighbourhoods and movements for justice.
Latin America is home to many vibrant identities, languages, and traditions. Honouring this heritage means making space for that diversity, including Indigenous and Afro-Latin American communities whose experiences are too often pushed to the margins, even within celebrations of their own cultures.
Celebration also comes with responsibility. We cannot embrace a community’s culture while accepting the racism, exploitation and exclusion its members face. Our solidarity must extend to struggles for accessible education, dignified work, migrant justice and the right to live without fear of displacement, detention or separation from loved ones. No one’s safety, dignity or belonging should depend on their immigration status.
Here in so-called Canada, that means challenging measures like those introduced through Bill C-12, which prevent people seeking asylum from having their claims heard by the Immigration and Refugee Board. Celebrating Latin American communities must include standing alongside migrants and refugees from these communities and beyond, and opposing policies that restrict access to protection. The right to seek safety should never be treated as a privilege.
As students organizing on Indigenous lands, we must recognize the connections between Indigenous communities’ struggles across Latin America and here on Turtle Island. From defending land and water against extraction to protecting their languages, cultures and sovereignty, Indigenous peoples continue to resist colonial violence and exploitation. Honouring Latin American heritage means standing with these communities and supporting their right to determine the futures of their lands and peoples. Our solidarity must cross borders and be reflected in our actions.
The YFS celebrates Latin American students, workers, organizers, and community members who bring their knowledge, care, and political imagination into our shared spaces.
