Opportunities For Youth (OFY)

Opportunities For Youth was a federal Liberal program of the early 1970s that provided funding for a variety of community projects, including some initiated by new left groups. In Toronto, some of those OFY grants went to a drop-in centre created by Red Morning; Kids Can Press – a publishing collective dedicated to racial diversity; and a housing co-op group called Bain Avenue Tenants’ Action.

OFY grants tended to be unpredictable. Just because a project had received funding in one year was no guarantee that it would be renewed in the following one. This lack of stability in funding meant that projects were quite vulnerable and often seen to be short-term. It was up to activists to see that their long-range goals could be met, whether or not the federal government provided any money.


Related Reading
Opportunities for Youth: 120 projects chosen from 1000 applicants (see p. 4)
The Flowers of Power: LIP and OFY Programmes, Lorne Huston. Published in Our Generation, Volume 8, Number 4, October 1972