11

My Experience as a Refugee and Settlement Worker

EUSEBIO GARCIA

In November 1984, my brother Luis Enrique and I fled the civil war in El Salvador and headed for Texas where another one of my brothers, Abelino, had been living and working for some years as a non-status person. All three of us were arrested, put in detention, and separated while crossing the Mexico/United States border. I was only nineteen at the time, spoke no English, and felt very nervous about what might happen to me. I did not understand the detention review process and why that system was re-traumatizing me. Fortunately, the other detainees, as well as a lawyer from a place called “Proyecto Libertad” who visited me periodically, were reassuring, telling me everything would be okay and that eventually I would be released and reunited with my older brothers. Their presence helped me through a very anxious time. After three months, my bond amount (a cash deposit, like bail) was decreased and Abelino, who had already been released, was able to pay it. Although my brothers and I were freed from detention, we were still without status and our future was uncertain.

Our original plan was to travel to Canada where another brother, José Agustin, had been living for a year. He filled me in on what was happening at Friends House, which was the home of the Society of Friends (Quakers) in Toronto. Friends House was the place for Central American refugees to assemble and organize in the 1980s. Every Thursday, refugees from Central America would gather there to talk about the war, and to plan actions such as demonstrations in front of the United States consulate, protesting American aid to repressive Central American governments. Nancy Pocock, Fred Franklin, Isabelle Showler, and Erika Whitney were some of the incredible Quakers who were there for us. While Spanish was our language of communication, there was always someone there to translate into English. José told Nancy about our predicament in Texas, and she got the ball rolling on our resettlement in Canada. We arrived in Toronto on December 13, 1985, and were taken from the airport to Hotel Isabella, downtown. What I remember most from this time was how cold it was! I didn’t want to leave the building as I hoped for the weather to get better before going outside. After two weeks in Canada, I went to a Thursday meeting at Friends House and got involved with the Central American refugee community. I took English classes at George Brown College and later studied social work there. The course combined in-class learning with work experience, and in my first year I took a work placement at Friends House to help newcomers to Canada find jobs. I soon discovered what a rewarding experience this was. Although the jobs were usually entry-level positions, the newcomers were happy to gain Canadian experience, and I felt great being able to help.

In my second year at George Brown, I took a placement in Family Benefits (now known as the Ontario Disability Support Program), where I encountered many mental health issues among my clients. Although I had worked with people facing hardships before, this was on a different scale, and the experience wore me down. When a full-time position as a refugee settlement worker came up at Friends House in October 1990, I eagerly applied and got the job. I started working with Nancy Pocock, an amazing woman who tirelessly advocated for refugees. Nancy founded the Toronto Monthly Meetings of the Quaker Committee for Refugees.

DIRECT SERVICE PROGRAM AT FRIENDS HOUSE (QUAKER HOUSE)

The needs of displaced persons and refugees has long been part of Friends’ work in Toronto through the work and support of former and present Quaker Committee for Refugees members, the Toronto Monthly Meeting, and Quaker foundations. The committee has gone from assisting Central Americans to serving people from all parts of the world. Our specific aim is to provide assistance to refugees both during and after the application process in the areas of translation and interpretation, application to social services, finding shelter on arrival, obtaining legal aid services, inland and overseas family sponsorship applications, detention-related matters, medical and school appointments, and other settlement services. In addition, our committee members spend a lot of their time speaking to local and national politicians and creating awareness of refugee issues within the Quaker community and the community at large. We also offer follow-up support with family reunification and citizenship applications.

Our committee holds two big events every year. For Labour Day weekend, I bring a group of immigrants and refugees up to Camp NeeKauNis, a Quaker summer camp located in Waubanshene, a beautiful town 160 kilometres north of Toronto. Here they can experience nature, canoeing, swimming, and playing soccer. They also participate in an art program and a musical evening at the camp. This not only gives newcomers a taste of Canada’s beauty, but also strengthens bonds between different families so they can support each other. I also organize a Christmas party for refugees at Friends House, a celebration attended every year by over a hundred children and their parents. The event has been ongoing for more than twenty-five years and is a wonderful way to make a difference for newcomers during the holiday season. It is a chance for kids to sing and play classic carols, meet “the man in red,” share stories, eat great food and leave with a gift to be unwrapped on Christmas Eve.

IMMIGRATION HOLDING CENTRE IN TORONTO

Many years after my departure from my homeland, I find myself interviewing detainees at the Immigration Holding Centre in Toronto to find out their needs and offer orientation and assistance. Where appropriate, I refer them to the Refugee Law Office for representation at detention reviews, to legal aid, or to the Toronto Bail Program when release appears achievable. The detention population includes persons attempting to make refugee claims, those awaiting a decision on their claim, and those who have had their refugee claims refused. Also at the Centre are persons attempting to enter Canada as visitors, persons who have lived in Canada without status, and those who have overstayed their visas. The population at the Centre includes women and men who come from all over the world. Until recently, children were also detained.

The detention environment is hard on all those involved. Those with valid passports can be deported very swiftly, leaving their families, businesses, and possessions in Canada. It is particularly upsetting when parents are being deported with their Canadian children, or with a child who has a serious medical problem. Others frequently need support in helping adjust to the reality of being forced to return home. Here are a couple of stories that I have been personally involved with at the Immigration Holding Centre.

A Failed Refugee Claimant

Josefa (not her real name) came to Canada when she was seven months pregnant. The father of her child joined her four months after her arrival. A consultant made errors related to their cases that resulted in Josefa’s partner ending up in detention for a year before he was deported to Nigeria. Her partner was killed a few months after being removed from Canada. Josefa remained in Canada with her refugee claim still open until eventually her application was also rejected. When she refused to leave Canada voluntarily, she was detained, along with her daughter, who was now six years old. Prior to Josefa’s detention, her lawyer had applied on her behalf for admission to Canada on the basis of humanitarian and compassionate considerations, which was accepted only when our office managed to gather evidence that her partner had been killed in Nigeria. This time she received a positive decision on her application, after having been detained with her daughter for more than six months at the Immigration Holding Centre. Josefa is now fully employed, and she and her daughter are finally settling in Canada.

Crossing from the United States

Miguel (not his real name) had worked for many years in the United States as a subcontractor for a flooring company—he had no status in the US. The company sent him to do a project in Liverpool, New York, which consisted of installing a ceramic floor at a sports bar. Miguel and some other men arrived in New York on July 17, 2017. The job took them about three weeks to finish.

Before heading back to Texas, the majority of the men that Miguel had travelled with wanted to take advantage of the fact that they were near Niagara Falls and wanted to go and see them because they all knew that it was unlikely that they would be back in this part of the country anytime soon. The driver of the vehicle, a friend who also had no status in the United States, got confused following the signs on the highway, and they ended up in the line waiting to cross into Canada and by the time they realized what had happened, they had passed the point where they could turn around. Since Miguel was an undocumented worker in the United States, he knew this spelled trouble. When their turn came, the officer at the border asked them to provide their identification. They all had some form of identification from Mexico, but no passports. Because they could not provide legitimate identification, they were informed that they had two options: they could return to the United States, or they had the right to make a claim for refugee protection in Canada. Miguel decided to claim refugee status. The car was seized by Canadian authorities and Miguel was detained and sent to the Immigration Holding Centre in Toronto, where I had the opportunity to hear part of his refugee claim story.

Miguel decided to submit his application as he was certain that, if he returned to the United States, he would be quickly deported to Mexico. He couldn’t understand why he had been detained and he asked to see a bond person to be able to get out of the holding centre. He began by telling me that his life was in danger in Mexico because he would be targeted by members of organized criminal gangs like the Zetas that are present in almost every single state of Mexico. It is well known that illegal immigrants that are deported back to Mexico face far greater risk than the average citizen because of the misconception that they have money. It does not matter how hard you try to explain to these criminals that you have just been deported and have no money, no assets, and very often no family and no place to sleep. They do not care about your problems, and choose instead to harass their victims, kidnap them, beat them, torture, and sometimes kill them. Their family members, including parents, siblings, cousins, spouses, and children are often kidnapped as well and only released upon receipt of the requested ransom.

Miguel knew about some friends of his cousins that returned to Mexico of their own accord about a year before. They went missing and their family members in Mexico believed they had been murdered. About three years ago, two of his ex-wife’s cousins, whom he always knew as “El topo” and “La eléctrica,” returned to Mexico. Shortly after their return they went missing. Their father saw strangers driving their car and notified the authorities. About a month after their disappearance he was given the dismembered bodies of his two children by the authorities. Miguel knew that the Zetas had murdered many vulnerable migrants in the past and have buried their bodies in shallow graves.

He feared returning to Mexico because he knew he would be exposed to a higher risk of violence after having lived in the United States. He was certain that he would be harassed, targeted, attacked, and very possibly murdered because these criminals believed that they and their families had money saved up and they would try to get money from them through extortion and kidnapping. Miguel believed that if he were returned to Mexico, he would meet this same fate. For these reasons, he asked the Canadian government to consider his application for refugee protection in Canada. If given the opportunity, he would embrace the chance to become a hard-working, useful member of the Canadian society.

An Unaccompanied Minor at the Immigration Holding Centre

I helped Ahmed (not his real name), a very talkative teenager from Syria, get legal representation to be allowed to stay in Canada. First, I discovered that he had tried to make a refugee claim at the Fort Erie border as an unaccompanied minor, which resulted in his being placed in isolation at the Immigration Holding Centre. It was shocking to me to see a kid from Syria, the very country from which Canada has decided to take 25,000 refugees for resettlement, being ordered deported, and not being allowed to contact his family or to socialize with the rest of the detainee population. There was no reason to detain him as he was not considered to be a danger to the public. Furthermore, detaining children is supposed to be a last resort. Now here he was, sitting across the table from me and trying to understand what was happening to him. He began by telling me that he was living in Egypt with his family when his residency permit expired. He faced being sent back to Syria, where he would most likely be recruited into the Army. Fearing the worst, his parents decided that the best place for him was Canada. Ahmed had already suffered war in his country and had fled under dangerous conditions to another country. Now he had to face the threat of being deported back to his war-torn country. Finally, he was sent to Canada on his own, where he ended up in solitary confinement. It was during this time of re-traumatization that he had to justify that he was a refugee and plead for protection.

I connected Ahmed with a lawyer who helped him get started with an immigration process that not only delayed his deportation, but ended up getting him released from the holding centre after being granted first-stage approval for permanent residence on humanitarian and compassionate grounds by Minister of Immigration John McCallum.

These stories are three of many real-life tragedies for people who are considered low-risk detainees, but who lack immigration status in Canada. There are many other human beings who face long periods of detention and having to deal with ID issues and detention reviews, refugee hearings, and interviews all the time. It is for this reason that detention has always been at the heart of the work of the Quaker Committee for Refugees in Toronto. For those individuals making a refugee claim, the Immigration and Refugee Board’s written decision is a foundational document to start living a normal life in Canada. It is critical for them to envision a future in their new country. On the day they receive IRB approval, they can start dreaming of the time when they will be reunited with their loved ones who are still overseas. Locally, many of them find it hard to focus on work, study, and integration until they know that they have been allowed to live here permanently.

The Friends don’t work alone; we are also part of national and provincial networks such as the Canadian Council for Refugees and the Ontario Coalition of Agencies Serving Immigrants. We all dream of a fair immigration and refugee protection system under which refugees and immigrants can feel more secure and welcome. I hope the above stories can help Canadians learn about the realities many human beings face every single day as they try to get permanent resident status in this country.