Reflection Blog

              Throughout the semester I got to learn more about Canada's immigrant policies and what the people coming into Canada have to deal with once they arrive. I got to learn how Canada and the world view immigrants and the negative effects these views can have.The information I learned surprised me a little bit. It kind of made me question some of my older beliefs and also made me thankful for not having to be in the situation some people who come over to Canada have to face. The worst part about learning all this is knowing it is only going to get worse do too the current government that we have in place here in Canada. The other reason I believe it will get worse is because of the current political system we have in place here in North America and around the world. The system is Capitalism. This system's main goal is to increase profits and the social aspects are forgotten and not improved.
              The main thing that stuck out to me during my research is how negative some people's views of immigrants can be. This to me doesn't make sense. The people who do not think immigrants are a good thing for a country have clouded judgement. They do not understand the upside to having immigrants in our society. Immigrants can add a lot to a country. Not only adding their culture but they can also help the economy as well.
I hope people become more educated about immigrants and the struggles that they go through in order to create a better life for themselves and their families.



-John

Immigrant Housing Issues in Canada

            The idea of coming to Canada for immigrants and refugees seems like a bright future with new opportunities to create a new life for themselves and their families. In some cases this is true. Other times not so much. The issue of finding suitable employment is a major issue but another issue that faces families is being able to find housing. Most of the immigrants coming to Canada head to one of three major destinations. These three locations are: the greater Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal area. Groups of immigrants with the same nationality tend to form communities together and create a more comfortable environment. Even though this is a positive for them there are even more negatives.

            Some of the problems that face immigrants within their communities are: “adequacy, affordability, imminent notice of eviction, isolation and high crime levels.” (mosaicbc.com) In some areas where immigrants settle the housing conditions can be poor and impoverished. The cost of housing can also be too high for the families to afford or takes up a large percent of their income. Another problem the immigrants have to deal with within their communities are unfair landlords who can be unfair, impatient and sometimes racist. The locations of living can be in a poor location, which can be far away from services that the family might need. Due to poverty and other social issues the communities immigrants settle in can have a high level of crime because of the desperation of its residences.

            A new life in Canada sees very desirable but in some cases it is not everything it seems. There are a lot of challenges that they will have to face in order to find success here in Canada. Once again it seems that Canada is not as great to its immigrants as it presents itself to the world.

-John


References:

Mosaicbc.com, http://www.mosaicbc.com/sites/all/files/publications-public/SCPI%20Summary%20Report_0.pdf

 M, Carlos. A, Chambon. D, Hulchanski. C, Teixieira (1995). The Homeless Hub. http://www.homelesshub.ca/Library/Housing-Issues-Facing-Immigrants-and-Refugees-in-Greater-Toronto-Initial-Findings-From-Jamaican-Polish-and-Somali-Communities-36219.aspx

Reflection Blog

       Looking back at all that I learned in the blogs posted about immigrants and refugees, I have noticed a trend. In today's society and years back, immigrants are thought of as bad. During times in the Industrial Revolution, immigrants were forced to use hard labour to make a dollar for themselves and their family. Children were forced to work as well and treated poorly. Now, people have to travel to different countries in order to get opportunities that will benefit them more than if they stayed where they were. 

       Even though Canada brings many opportunities for immigrants and refugees, it is a hard process to be considered to be a Canadian citizen. There is paperwork that must be filled out, health examinations and much more that an immigrant must go through in order to be considered. Once an immigrant comes to Canada, it seems as though they are not considered to be good people by Canadian born citizens. Many Canadians think that immigrants are stealing their jobs and free health care and do not see the positives in immigration. The government may be at fault for this, but to everything there are ups and downs. 

       Doing these blogs helped me to understand the criticism that immigrants and refugees given by Canadian citizens. With a topic as touchy as this one, it goes on the saying "don't judge a book by its cover." These people come to Canada hoping for a better life, and we continually judge them by what has happened in some cases, like people getting laid off or unemployment. An open mind needs to be kept with this topic, and other people need to be considered in life.

-Alannah

Looking Back...

     I think many of us started out this class, or course for that matter, with the idea that Canada is a model country in which we accept everyone, and have first-rate social policies and and equality for all. However, after finishing this course, I found that underneath some of the more positive aspects of Canada, we still have many issues that need to be looked at.
     Firstly, after listening to all of the presentations, each group mentioned one or more of the other groups in the class. For example, my immigrant group mentioned mental illness, and the First Nations group mentioned women. This showed that no one aspect of social welfare stands alone and if a person belongs to any of the groups mentioned in class, it had the potential to greatly oppress them. Also, these groups showed aspects of intersectionality such as race, gender, class, and sexuality, and how they interact in order to create social inequality. This information went along well with that of my CESD class in that we talked about the different kinds of oppression and how it creates "isms" such as sexism, ageism, and heterosexism.
      Secondly, by learning the history of social welfare and the many changes over the years, I sadly realized that Canada is no longer making progressive strides with our welfare state. In fact, we are starting to mirror the United States in that we value capitalism more than the well-being of our citizens. I also noticed after learning about the Poor Laws, that the stigmas of deserving and undeserving poor are resurfacing, in that this country seems to value those who work and contribute to the economy more than anyone else. For example, business and entrepreneur-class immigrants have an easier time becoming Canadian citizens and finding work here.
       Thirdly, even though this wasn't actually part of the course material, but I definitely learned of the importance of access to education. By this, I mean I applaud Timmins and the rest of the class with the technical difficulties that occurred from videoconferencing. The one class when Silvia was in Timmins and we were watching her on the projector was really a different experience. I felt the disconnect there as the instructor was not actually in the room with us, and I thought that perhaps this is what the Timmins group must have felt all the time. Even with that barrier, you guys were always so involved and your presentation was great!
    Lastly, learning the different political ideologies really helped to put the class together and understand their views on social welfare and the aspects of our country they value. For example, conservatives wanting to preserve the nuclear family with heterosexual marriages, and radical feminists see that patriarchy is the cause of most oppression. Mostly, these ideologies showed the different lenses people wear when making decisions and therefore, there is more than one lens available when creating solutions.
     Overall, this class set the foundation for many of the classes I took this semester, and will take in my remaining years at Algoma. It definitely helped to show me that all of my courses are related and touch on each other somehow. This is important for me to better understand the material and relate it to social work practice.


Shannon

Intimate Partner Violence

When one hears of violence against women many may think solely that it involves such things as physical abuse such as bruses or broken bones, and others may think sexual abuse such as rape. In fact violence against women can take the shape of many different act. Guruge, Roche, and Catallo (2012) describe violence against women as a global phenomenon that can be in the form of physical, sexual, and psychological acts of control, threat, aggression, abuse, and assault. This type of violence is demonstrated through acts such as female infanticide, female child abuse, incest, rape, sexual harassment, intimate partner violence (IPV), and abuse and neglect of our senior women. These horrible acts are experienced by women from people such as close and distant family members, neighbors, and my men who hold a position of power.

Lets take a closer look into IPV or intimate partner violence. IPV is defined as a physical, sexual, emotional and/or financial abuse carried out by an intimate partner as stated in Vol 2. Issue 6 of the BMJ Open. I would think that this form of abuse is very difficult on women let alone an immigrant women. If you can imagine yourself as a women who is perhaps leaving her home, family, friends, and all her familiar surroundings to accompany her intimate partner to another country. She has no support around her, and perhaps barely speaks the local language. Dealing with the transition of a completely new world is hard enough to adjust to, but to also deal with abuse from the person she has made all these life changes for seems rather unfair and not to mention cruel.

Women world wide are experiencing this same type of abuse. When comparing immigrant women to canadian born, the levels of abuse does vary but in all areas, between cultural groups, types of abuse and levels of abuse. There have been no studies determining that immigrant women receive more or less abuse from their intimate partners then Canadian born women. Although women who are living in an institution or some form of temporary accommodation seem to be predominantly susceptible to this form of abuse by men who are in a power position or by their intimate partner being the ones placing them here, therefore abusing them through isolation.

This form a treatment towards women has to come to an end. Women are supposed to be considered an equal in todays society and yet still we still suffer through abuse and inequality. There are many organization that are fighting against these issues such as Because I am a Girl, Act to End, and YWCA Rose Campaign.




-Denise





References

- Guruge, S., Roche, B., & Catallo, C., (2012). Violence against Women: An Exploration of the Physical and Mental Health Trends among Immigrant and Refugee women in Canada. Hindawi Publishing Corporation Nursing and Research Practice, 1-15.

- Du Monte, J., Forte, T., (2012). An Exploratory Study on the consequences and contextual factors of intimate partner violence among immigrant and Canadian-born women. BMJ Open access medical research, 2:e001728.

doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2012-001728.

- Image retrieved from Irishhealth.com

- Act to End: http://www.jwicanada.com/

- Because I am a Girl: http://becauseiamagirl.ca/page.aspx?pid=3816

- YWCA Rose Campaign: http://ywcacanada.ca/en/pages/rose/about

Violence Against Immigrant and Refugee Women

    Over the course of this blog, I have yet to touch upon the impact immigration and refugee status has on women. More specifically, the violence that immigrant and refugee women face once arriving in Canada, and how this group of people is one of the most marginalized in our country.

     One of the reasons immigrant and refugee women face so much violence is because they are in a lower socioeconomic level than immigrant men and women in general (Fulford, 1995). Not only do they face racism and language barriers, but there is no specific policy towards female immigrants and refugees in order to protect them (Fulford, 1995). Because not much is said publicly about this issue, it is almost invisible to regular society. Also, when female immigrants and refugees are in need of help regarding violence, there is no funding in order to support the programs to help these women heal (Fulford, 1995).
   
     Some of the women coming to Canada aren't even here by choice; many are victims of trafficking and are subject to violence, abduction, fraud, and deception (Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women [CRIAW], 2012). Additionally, some women are so desperate to leave persecution from their own countries, that that they become mail order brides or domestic workers, and may become victims of physical or sexual abuse (CRIAW, 2012).
 
   There are many reasons why immigrant women feel helpless when it comes to violence; one of the reasons is that many of these women feel a sense of shame about being a victim, seeking help, or leaving their abusive husband (Justice Institute of British Columbia [JIBC], 2007). Another reason is that experience of fear or racism may deter them from seeking help (JIBC, 2007). Lastly, since many of these women face challenges earning a living or accessing income assistance, it may be impossible for these women to leave their abusive situations and find appropriate housing (JIBC, 2007).
  
     An example of an immigrant group who faces violence is Indian women. These women "face cultural constraints in accessing the benefits of  Canadian policies for domestically abused women" (Shirwadkar, 2004). Culturally, Indian women live in an extremely patriarchal society in which they are seen as submissive (Shirwadkar, 2004). If an Indian woman is not meeting specific standards such as cooking, taking care of her in-law's family, or remaining docile and submissive, this is seen as deviating from the cultural norm and may be met with abuse (Shirwadkar, 2004). Unfortunately, this creates the idea that abuse is justified and is a regular part of marriage (Shirwadkar). When coming to Canada, some of these values are then brought here, so one can see that there are definite cultural differences when dealing with the issues of abuse and violence.

     Overall, it is important that immigrant and refugee women feel safe when coming to Canada. I can see that this is a very touchy subject, as abuse is seen differently in many cultures. While our society still focuses on patriarchal family values, it is not to the extent of India or some other countries. Many of the feminist issues related to class can be found within this blog, including: our policies are gender neutral and do not take into account the special needs of women, women are oppressed by men as a class, and that male violence perpetuates domination over women (Straka, 2011).       

Shannon
                                         References

Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women (2012). Immigrant and refugee women. Retrieved from http://www.criaw-icref.ca/ImmigrantandRefugeeWomen

Fulford, S. K. (1995). Feminism, multiculturalism and violence against immigrant women in Canada. (Doctoral dissertation). Retrieved from Circle. The University of British Columbia.

Justice Institute of British Columbia. (2007). Empowerment of immigrant and refugee women who are victims of violence in their intimate relationships. British Columbia.

Shirwadkar, S. (2004). Canadian domestic violence policy and Indian immigrant women. Violence Against Women, 10, 860-879. doi: 10.1177/1077801204266310

Straka, S. (2011). Feminist approaches to social policy [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from Algoma University Course Management System.

Reflection...

In looking back over my journey through this blogging assignment, I was very surprised in the beginning to see how unwelcoming Canada is, or is becoming, to immigrants and refugees. I had always heard wonderful things about the policies and practices that Canada had towards newcomers. We are known for our diversity, our multiculturalism and our welcoming nature. I then discovered, through reading journals and articles, that it is not quite so picture-perfect as it seems. Once I reached this conclusion, I did my first two blogs on how little we've changed in five hundred years in how unwelcoming we are, and how poorly we treat some people viewed as inferior.

Perhaps the thing that stands out the most, however, is that it is only too easy to see all these negative things that Canada is doing in it's reception of immigrants and refugees. Yes, there are unjust policies that have been or are being put in place regarding newcomers. And yes, we are becoming very neo-conservative with our welfare system. My first two blogs spoke of the prejudices and unfair treatment of refugees.

However, it takes a lot more determination to find positive actions towards immigrants and refugees. My last two blogs, the ones about the World University Service of Canada, and the Office for Refugees, Archdiocese of Toronto, were very encouraging. They showed what a massive difference that individuals, who join together to support a common cause, can make. I know that I would like to be more involved with these initiatives. These undertakings support a more socially democratic or socialist viewpoint on how we should be treating immigrants and refugees. 

One aspect of the blogging assignment I really appreciated was that we got to read and comment on several other blogs. This was very interesting, finding out what people are passionate about and getting into discussions regarding various social issues. It was a very stretching, informative experience. My thanks to everyone for making this a valuble assignment.

-Selina

Refugee Sponsorship Programs

While I was searching for another positive example of Canada's response to immigrants and refugees, a friend of mine told me about a yearly refugee conference he attends in Toronto. So, I went on the Archdiocese of Toronto's website and found some very positive information regarding their welcoming of refugees. The Office for Refugees, Archdiocese of Toronto (ORAT), works with national and international partners to help relieve the strenuous situations of people who have been displaced from their homes (archtoronto.org/refugee/). The goal of this program is to ensure that the sponsored refugees settle in and find a comfortable place in Canadian society (archtoronto.org/refugee/). The way the program works in through “An agreement between the Archdiocese of Toronto and Citizenship and Immigration Canada, [that] allows for parishes, religious orders and other related groups within the Archdiocese to privately sponsor refugees” (archtoronto.org/arch_offices/refugee.html). The group that chooses to sponsor a refugee or a refugee family is then responsible for their moral, logistical, and monetary support. This program has already sponsored millions of refugees in the thirty years it has been running, and has integrated these refugees successfully into Canadian society (archtoronto.org/arch_offices/refugee.html).  Statistics Canada supports the idea that newcomers to Canada experience a better quality of life and material well-being here than in their previous situations. In fact, 84% to 92% of newcomers have said that their quality of life is better here. 

Helping refugees is a prime example of what it means to “go in peace to love and serve the Lord,” says Toronto Archbishop Thomas Collins (Girard, 2012).

This situation and program falls under the socialist, or Marxist, ideology. "Marxism is a theory of power and it's distribution: inequality" (MacKinnon, 515). ORAT works to distribute some of the wealth more equally. They use money that is raised in the diocese to make better opportunities for refugee families.  It also promotes freedom, and collectivism in that they encourage the whole community to support the undertaking to sponsor refugee families.

I know that my friend is trying to get his parish here in Sault Ste. Marie to be able to sponsor a refugee family to come to our city. Quite some time ago, this parish sponsored a Vietnamese family to come to live in Sault Ste. Marie, but the parish has not been able to since, due to monetary or some other form of struggles. He hopes that, in attending this refugee conference, will make it easier for him to proceed.

 

The Report on Systemic Racism and Discrimination In Canadian Refugee and Immigration Policies defines Anti-racism as “working toward the elimination of racism by challenging our society and ourselves.” This is just what programs and groups like the ORAT are doing: challenging their various parishes and groups to raise enough money and support to encourage the welcoming of refugees into our society. 

 

Martha Piper once said, “Our goal must be to educate global citizens who see themselves not simply as citizens of a local region, but also as human beings bound to other human beings in ties of concern and understanding (Khan, 3).” This is just what socialism, and the ORAT suggest. I hope that this sense of global citizenship will spread through Sault Ste. Marie and make us all more concious, caring people. 

-Selina

References

Archdiocese of Toronto - Office of Refugees. (n.d.). Archdiocese of Toronto - Home Page. Retrieved December 3, 2012, from http://www.archtoronto.org/arch_offices/refugee.html

Canadian Social Trends. (2008, November 21). Statistics Canada: Canada's national statistical agency / Statistique Canada : Organisme statistique national du Canada. Retrieved December 3, 2012, from http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/11-008-x/2007000/9627-eng.htm#5

Girard, C. (2012, April 20). Archdiocese of Toronto Office for Refugees after 15 short months. The Catholic Register. Retrieved December 3, 2012, from http://www.catholicregister.org/features/item/12811-archdiocese-of-toronto-office-for-refugees-after-15-short-months

Khan, A. (2012). Forced Migration and Global Citizenship: Reflections on My Transition from Refugee to an Immigrant and Scholar. Oxford Monitor of Forced Migration (pp. 59-62). Unknown: OxMo.

MacKinnon, C. (n.d.). JSTOR: JSTOR: Feminism, Marxism, Method and the State:An Agenda for Theory. Retrieved November 30, 2012, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/3173853

ORAT - Office for Refugees - Archdiocese of Toronto. (n.d.). Archdiocese of Toronto - Home Page. Retrieved December 3, 2012, from http://www.archtoronto.org/refugee/

Report on Systemic Racism and Discrimination In Canadian Refugee and Immigration Policies. (2000, November 1). Canadian Council for Refugees. Retrieved March 12, 2012, from ccrweb.ca/files/arreport.pdf

Racism issues in Canada and a view of Muslim Hate in England

 Erika: 

Link: for Muslim Hate in England: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFGt4_Efv6Y

Muslim Hate in England is a video I found on YouTube. This video studies how society in immigrants and refugees are facing issues of racism and prejudice in England.  Tammanna Rahman goes under covers as a housewife who speaks very little English In England to investigate the racism in England. Tammanna was born in England but her family is from Bangladesh and she is Muslim. Tammanna goes to Southmead where the majority is white working class and racism tensions are high. The results Tammanna find are shocking, when Tammanna goes out to go shopping she is harassed by citizens by having rocks thrown at her and being called a ‘Paki.’ Tammanna is scared within a couple of days at her stay in Southmead, Tammanna and is reduced to tears. Tammanna is a victim for radicalized insults and being accused of being a terrorist. I think it is sad that Tammanna can not feel safe in this neighborhood and is a subject to radicalized abuse. It would horrifying if an immigrant from south Asian descent had to move to this community and would be in shock by the cruelty of people and the racism played out in society.  There are some individuals that Tammanna interacts with that are not judgment towards her and help her with directions in the city. This shows how we may perceive society as being multicultural that racism is deeply rooted inside individuals.  There are citizens who do show compassion for Tammanna when she asks for directions. As Canadians we have to decide if we are going to judge people based on their appearance or are we going to accept them for who they are?

We may feel we are living in a multicultural society that is accepting towards immigration but often that is not case. Anishnawbek people are still the victims of racism in society and are facing intolerance for their religious beliefs.  In our society we lacked programs for religious organizations and multiculturalism.  Anishnawbek leaders who have promoted multiculturalism have been looked down upon with suspicion and have not have their voices heard.  We need to examine our media for stereotypes of people that enforces misconceptions about the group as a whole. Vulnerable groups need to be studied for the purpose that are at risk for facing discrimination and prejudice within media and the work place. Minority Women are facing barriers of language, gender equally in the workplace and having active roles in making political decisions.

There are some positive aspects of Canada’s multiculturalism for example was that Canadians are less likely to believe immigrants are criminals and eight-five percent of Canadian say that multiculturalism is important to society.  Focus in Canada survey results were that eighty-three of Canadians believe that Muslims make a positive contribution to society. Children of immigrants have better education results than any other Western countries.  (The Current State of Multiculturalism in Canada and research themes on Canadian Multiculturalism 2008-2010. 2012. Pgs. 1-4).

Canadian’s Conservative view of racism is that race does not matter. This ignores white violence in history and does let the victim heal from becoming oppression from authority. I feel we should not deny in our history that there was white violence because we cannot understand the victim’s perspective if we believe the problem never existed.  In the article “Conservative Definition of Racism,’ I have quoted, “Conservative rightly say blacks kill more blacks than white kill blacks.” (The Conservative Definition of Racism: aka How Not to Deal with The Problem, 2012. Pg.1). I found this statement appalling considering there was black slavery, blacks not having the right to vote or even use the same washroom as white people. We cannot simply erase what we do not like in history and try to replace with something fictional.

“The Current State of Multiculturalism in Canada and research themes on Canadian Multiculturalism 2008-2010.”  Citizenship and Immigration Canada. 01, 12, 2012. http://www.cic.gc.ca.

“The Conservative Definition of Racism: aka How Not to Deal with The Problem.”  April 18, 2012. http://deadwildroses.wordpress.com

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFGt4_Efv6Y

Mental Health of Refugees at Risk with New Detention Laws

Refugees hope to arrive in Canada for a new chance at life and an escape from the troubles that face them back home. However, some of Canada’s new immigration policies can add to a refugee’s already troubled life. In June of 2012 the Canadian government passed Bill C-31. “The new law made amendments to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and the Balanced Refugee Reform Act, including allowing Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney to designate groups of refugees who have come to Canada as "irregular arrivals." (CBC.ca) This bill also allows these people to be separated from their families and detained until they are cleared.

One of the biggest issues with this bill is its effect on young children. The bill states “Children aged 16 to 18 would be incarcerated as if they were adults, and children under 16 will either be taken away from their parents and put in foster care or kept with their mothers and separated from their fathers.” (CBC.ca) These kinds of actions can have a devastating effect on a child’s mental health. With the number of immigrants and refugees coming into Canada every year the length of time a family can be detained and separated from each other will continue to grow.

Canada is not the first country to implement a bill like this. “Australia has had rules similar to the ones in Canada since 1992.” (Thestar.com) Studies in Australia have shown “high levels of self-harm among detainees and a suicide rate 10 times higher than in the country’s general population.” (Thestar.com) With studies and results from Australia it would seem that this bill should not be allowed to continue in Canada. The facts about how this bill can damage the lives of refugees and immigrants are another indicator that Canada is not as fair to its immigrants as it presents itself to the world. 

-John

References:

CBC News (July 2012). Refugees face metal health risk from new law. Retrieved from.

 http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/story/2012/07/09/pol-cmaj-refugee-health.html

TheStar.com (July 2012). Refugees suffer metal health problems under new Canadian detention        rules. Retrieved from: http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/1223572--refugees-suffer-mental-health-problems-under-new-canadian-detention-rules

The Treatment of Migrant Seasonal Workers

Canada has been allowing more people to come in to the country on an annual basis, under temporary employment authorization instead of as a permanent resident. Yet the Canadian population continues to diminish.  We currently have two means of sustaining our population. The first being child births, which we currently have a rate of 1.1 children per woman, and would need at least 2.1 children per woman to sustain our current population, let alone increase it. (Nichols, R. 2012)

Migrant worker are coming here on temporary statuses through different programs such as agriculture. Although the terms in which these workers have to abide by are rather unfair because they are completely tied to the employers who need them here for work and sometimes take advantage or exploit these workers based on their situation.  Some of the issues that migrant workers may face by being tied to an employer include, low wages (often below the official minimum), long hours and no overtime, unsafe working conditions, accommodations that do not meet health standards, denied access to public health care and employment insurance (even though they pay in to it), forced to give up their identification documents to their employers.  Migrant workers are vulnerable to being taken advantage of or abused by their employers due to their temporary legal status, if they were to take a stand against them, this most likely would lead to contract termination as well as deportation. (Walia, H. 2010)

 (Alfredo Barahona on Migrant workers rights)

When looking through the lens of an employer who would consider treating an employee like this; technically the exploitation of the worker would be a win win situation.  They are exploitable because they need the work and although the conditions do not meet Canadian standards they may be better than the conditions in which they are coming from. Flexible for long hours because of the amount of time they have in Canada to earn money, although they should be paid overtime. And expendable, because if one employee talks about worker rights and starts to “disturb the heard” then the employer can have them terminated, deported and replaced by the following week. (Walia, H. 2010)

Unfortunately this has become, as I see it, a vicious cycle. Due to the global market and international trade, Canada has made it virtually impossible for some farmers to sustain themselves through their own work. Therefore it seems as though we are causing a forced migration, so that these once self-sustaining farmers are coming here on a temporary basis to do the same work for much less money.

This is not true of all employers but I would hope that new laws would be put in place to better monitor the treatment of seasonal workers, be they Canadian citizens or temporary immigrants.

 

- Denise

References

Nichols, R. (2012). A Canadian Priorities Agenda: Securing the Fundamentals of Canada’s Prosperity. University of Toronto School of Public Policy and Goverance, 1-15.

Walia, H. (2010). Transient servitude: migrant labour in Canada and the apartheid of citizenship. Institute of Race Relations, 52,71-84.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxkmkmS6DgQ

Discrimination Against People Wanting to Immigrate

                I had recently found an article about a family wanting to immigrate to Canada, but with the health issues of one son, the entire family is not allowed to stay living in Canada. I had then researched how the family may be able to bring the son into Canada with them, but the concluding answer was no. It is a struggle for any family to come into Canada, there are many health tests that need to be taken, an abundance of paper work to fill out and not everyone in your family will be able to join you in this big move in your life.

                The article I chose was called “Family Ripped Apart, Immigration Says Son With Asperger’s ‘Inadmissible.’ I was immediately intrigued by this article just by the title alone. How can we as citizens not allow someone to come into our country, just because of a physical or mental illness? Coming to Canada may be to their benefit, in order to help them get more knowledge on their disease and to get some help for it. Why are we discriminating other people with disabilities, where as Canada is estimated to have over a quarter million of its families to have been touched by someone in their lives who is on the autism spectrum (Ontario Adult Autism Research and Support Network)? How does any of this make sense?

                To go on with what the article is talking about; Chris Reynolds wants to stay in Canada with his father and brother, but the only way his family’s application would be approved for permanent residency is if he is not on it. The Immigration officials say Reynolds will be too big of a drain on the health care system because he himself has Asperger’s syndrome and Tourette’s syndrome. His father and brother are torn between living in Canada permanently without Chris or staying where they are as a family. An early medical assessment by Citizenship and Immigration Canada was done and concluded that Chris would be deemed “medically inadmissible” and estimated his care could cost Canadians $7,000 a year. Chris’ father has been paying for Chris’ care out of his own pocket and his employer’s insurance plan covers the five medications that Chris has through a co-payment plan. Chris’ father says “even if Chris ends up needing continual care, is there nothing my family offers Canada to help offset the public cost of Chris?” The family withdrew their immigration application under the skilled worker program and has not opted to apply under the humanitarian and compassionate stream, based on advice given to them by their immigration lawyer. But unfortunately time is running out for the Reynolds’s because Chris is turning 22 soon and when he does he will be considered too old to be included on his father’s application if he were to apply again (Keung 2011). It is bad enough that grandparents of the family are not allowed to join the family for immigration, but now saying that your own child cannot accompany you, that is just ridiculous!

                How sad is it that Canada turns down people because of what they have, in this case a disorder, instead of what they could bring and the opportunities that this country can give them. Immigrating to Canada should be a happy and joyous time, knowing that new and better opportunities will come. But with all of the rules and regulations that are being put in place, many families are being turned away by the new experiences they could have, because of the things that could and has happened to many families in Canada. This is clearly an example of how many people are being discriminated before they come to Canada and because of the scrutiny they suffer,  most families are not able to come into Canada, due to some of the mental/physical disorders someone in their family suffers from.

-Alannah

References:

Keung, Nicholas (2011). Family Ripped Apart, Immigration Says Son with Asperger’s ‘Inadmissable. Retrieved from: http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/1008827--family-ripped-apart-immigration-says-son-with-asperger-s-inadmissible

Ontario Adult Autism Research and Support Network. How Many People Have Autism? Retrieved from: http://www.ont-autism.uoguelph.ca/how_many_people.shtml 

               

Algoma University and the WUSC Program

In searching for an article that was a positive portrayal of the reception of immigrants and refugees, I remembered that my family hosted a refugee student for a week last summer before he moved into residence.  I then searched the Algoma University website and found a very encouraging article about the vast majority of students here that agreed to a five dollar increase in student fees to support the Student Refugee Program that is through the World University Service Canada (WUSC).

"Making refugee education a top priority" (WUSC, 2012).

This wonderful program sponsors a refugee each year to come to Algoma University, covering all living and educational costs for the first year they are here (Woldanski, 2009). I believe it is very hard for some of us, who have never had our homes and lives torn away from us, to understand the kinds of situations these students are coming from. In order for refugees to be selected to come to Algoma University, they have to have high grades. I can not imagine maintaining any sort of academic standard while living in some of the situations that are all too common in refugee camps.

The fact that most students support refugees coming to Algoma brings a sense of hope that this generation will soon be setting out into the world and having strong voices to support programs like WUSC. This program "helps to resettle approximately 50 refugee students from around the world each year as permanent residents of Canada" (Woldanski, 2008). When I went to the WUSC website to do more research, the subtitle on the home page is "education changes the world" (WUSC, 2012). The philosophy of the World University Service Canada includes believing in the potential of each and every person. They trust that with the right opportunities, training, and education, people can make changes to improve their families, communities, and economies as well as to foster equality and strengthen the most vulnerable (WUSC, 2012).

"Helping International Students Succeed!" (WUSC, 2012).

With programs like WUSC that are flourishing in Canada, and this overwhelming support of students to welcome refugees, perhaps Canada can become more socially democratic in regard to immigrants and refugees. We need to protect these vulnerable people and ease their transition into a new and hopefully brighter future, not do things like cut health care and deport them to other countries.


-Selina

References

Woldanski, D. (2008, September 15). WUSC Program Offers Refugee Student a New Start in Life. Algoma University - Small University. Big Education.. Retrieved November 14, 2012, from http://www.algomau.ca/news/2008/09/15/131

Woldanski, D. (2009, February 4). Algoma U Students Vote Overwhelmingly to Support Student Refugee Program. Algoma University - Small University. Big Education.. Retrieved November 14, 2012, from http://www.algomau.ca/news/2009/02/04/167

World University Service of Canada | Our Philosophy. (n.d.). World University Service of Canada |. Retrieved November 14, 2012, from http://wusc.ca/en/our-philosophy