The Media Roundup provides links to recent and archived articles, in both English and French, on immigration and diversity appearing in the national and local news. Some international content is also included. Articles are updated weekly.
ICI Radio-Canada – Venus de l’étranger pour étudier, ils se retrouvent confinés
La pandémie complique le parcours de nombreux étudiants étrangers, qui constatent que l’expérience est parfois aux antipodes de ce qu’ils avaient en tête. Même en sol québécois, la plupart des étudiants étrangers doivent toutefois poursuivre des cours à distance. Et devant les embûches, de nombreux jeunes ont décidé d’abandonner ou de retarder leur projet d’études. Immigration, Réfugiés et Citoyenneté Canada a d’ailleurs délivré presque deux fois moins de permis d’études cette année.
Toronto Star – Court Sides with Mentally Disabled Man After Immigration Hearing Questions Legitimacy of His Marriage
She says her husband is a sensible man with a wise soul, and that she’s keen to start their new life together in Canada. What’s holding them up, it appears, is the fact that the 45-year-old man from Brampton is also mentally disabled — and an immigration hearing effectively found that he and his 35-year-old wife from India appeared to be incompatible. The Federal Court recently quashed a decision by an immigration appeal tribunal that rejected Gurmeet Kaur and Sandeep Singh Grewal as a genuine couple.
La Presse – Des sans-papiers réclament la régularisation de leur statut
Des dizaines de travailleurs sans papiers ont manifesté samedi au centre-ville de Montréal, devant les bureaux de Passeport Canada, afin de réclamer la régularisation de leur statut. Ils se disent « menacés » par les mesures de confinement, dont le couvre-feu. C’est l’organisme Solidarité sans frontières (SSF) qui organisait le rassemblement. Ce dernier a pris la forme d’une danse de solidarité, avec des consignes de distanciation claires. « Au Québec, le couvre-feu a obligé plusieurs travailleurs sans papiers à quitter leur travail de nuit par peur de la collaboration continue entre la police et l’Agence des services frontaliers du Canada », déplore le groupe.
Global News – Quebec Curfew Making Life Even Harder for Undocumented Workers Doing Essential Jobs: Protesters
Dozens of people braved frigid temperatures in Montreal on Saturday afternoon to demand the government grant legal status to undocumented workers. The demonstrators gathered outside Complexe Guy Favreau, which houses government of Canada offices. The protesters said many undocumented migrants who have night jobs in factories or cleaning offices are now afraid to go to work because of Quebec’s COVID-19 curfew.
CBC News – No Refuge in the Time of COVID: Iraqi Family Waits for Canada to Reschedule Asylum Interview
If one thing has become clear during the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s that there’s no refuge from the virus in Canada or internationally – including for people trying to find safety in this country as refugees. As COVID-19 shut down economies and closed borders, it also left many people fleeing persecution and death with nowhere to go. That includes the family of Ali Wada, who’s trying to sponsor his sister, Nadheerah, and her family who are caught in a bureaucratic limbo in Turkey.
Global News – Immigrant, Refugee Women Face ‘Complex Barriers’ When Accessing Supports to Escape Domestic Violence
Many immigrant and refugee women experience a lack of access to resources and a lack of knowledge on where those resources are located, which are crucial if they’re trying to escape domestic violence. For that reason, the Immigrant Migrant Women’s Association of Halifax (IMWAH) is stepping up to help. “Our organization has found itself facing increased demand for services from the immigrant and migrant women in our community,” said María José Yax-Fraser, chair of the capacity building committee at IMWAH.
