DEI Calendar for January 2025
DEI Calendar for January 2025
Tamil Heritage Month
January starts off with celebrations of Tamil Heritage Month, where we join Tamil Canadians to celebrate their culture and heritage that helped shape our country through extraordinary support in leadership, health, sports, hospitality, and business, among others.
Mentor Month
Mentor Month is to recognize and appreciate people who are striving to make the community a better place by offering guidance and mentorship to young people. This month reckons individuals to volunteer as mentors to lend support to mentees and help them build resilience and healthy interactions.
National Ribbon Skirt Day – January 4, 2025
National Ribbon Skirt Day is an opportunity to learn more about the Indigenous communities of Canada, and appreciate their contributions. Ribbon skirts were traditionally worn by the First Nations, Metis people, Inuit and Cree as a symbol of their identity, adaptation, survival, and connection to Mother Earth.
National Braille Day – January 4, 2025
This day is celebrated annually in honour of Louis Braille, who invented the Braille system to help people who are blind and/or visually impaired to have access to education and social inclusion. It raises awareness on the importance of braille to achieve freedom among people who are visually impaired.
Anniversary of Legal Ban of Conversion Therapy – January 7, 2025
This marks the anniversary of the ban of conversion therapy. The ban affirms Canada’s position in the protection of human rights, from children to adults, by upholding their decision to decide their sexual orientation or gender identity without external influence.
World Religion Day – January 19, 2025
World Religion Day is celebrated to promote interfaith understanding and advocate for peaceful co-existence between people and leaders of different religions to establish tolerance and harmony.
Martin Luther King Jr Day – January 20, 2025
Martin Luther King Jr Day is a day of remembrance and reflection. A constant reminder that the struggle for black liberation is a continuous and unfolding project that necessitates the collective pursuit of freedom for a just, loving, and equitable world for all colours, races, and sexes.
Lincoln Alexander Day – January 21, 2025
This day serves to honour the legacy of the Canadian trailblazer, Lincoln Alexander. Lincoln was Canada’s first black MP in the House of Commons, the first black federal cabinet minister, and Ontario’s first black Lieutenant Governor. His achievements are embedded in his fight against racial inequalities and injustices, and education advocacy.
International Day of Commemoration of Honouring the Victims of the Holocaust – January 27, 2025
Simply known as International Holocaust Remembrance Day, it is marked to commemorate the six million Jews who lost their lives from Nazi perpetrated crimes, the survivors, and to acknowledge the effects of the crimes.
Anniversary of the Quebec City Mosque Massacre – January 29, 2025
Culminating in the Green Square campaign, this day is observed in memory of the 6 people who were killed and several others who were injured in acts of Islamophobia in Quebec. It raises awareness of the continued existence of religious persecution and serves as a reminder of the work that needs to be done to achieve religious tolerance for mutual and peaceful co-existence.
Lunar New Year – January 29, 2025
Commonly known as the Spring Festival, the Lunar New Year is popularly celebrated in China and other Asian countries to mark the start of the New Year. Lasting 15 days, it is one of the most important festivals across Asia, with 2025 marking the Year of the Wood Snake.
For guidance and inspiration throughout the month, be sure to bookmark our DEI Calendar for January 2025, and sign up for our monthly newsletter. When you sign up, you get access to our full 2025 calendar. Canadian Equality Consulting also offers a variety of services to help with your internal DEI efforts in the workplace.