an alliance of university, community, and government partners dedicated to fostering welcoming communities and promoting the integration of immigrants and minorities across Canada
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.
Soo Today – Local Immigrants Preserve their Stories
Eugenia Weiczor lived through World War II, and started her Canadian experience where many people who immigrated between 1928 and 1971 did – at the famous Pier 21 in Halifax. Now a national museum, Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21 is governed by a new national mandate, to explore immigration to Canada at all points of entry, in all periods of time in Canada’s history. […] Weiczor, 90, along with other Sault Ste. Marie immigrants, gathered at Algoma University earlier this week to compile their photographs, video, and audio recordings, to transform their history into a digital story for future generations. […] Through this initiative, the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21 has collected over 100 stories from 12 different cities across Canada. The museum has plans to focus not only on the history, but also on understanding personal experiences.
New Canadian Media – New Video Series Spotlights Immigrant-Friendly Projects
A national organization which aims to bring together stakeholders to promote the successful integration of immigrants and minorities has just released a video series highlighting ideas on how to do just that. Pathways to Prosperity (P2P), an alliance of university, community and government partners, recently filmed a series of interviews with individuals working through Local Immigration Partnerships (LIPs) in Ontario. […] P2P says that “the long-term aim is to develop a comprehensive body of videos on promising practices for networks such as the LIPs and the Réseaux en immigration francophone (RIFs), and for community organizations working with immigrants so that they can share practices and activities that they have found to be successful in meeting their goals”. Citizenship and Immigration Canada’s Integration Branch funded the video series.
The Province – New Trial Ordered for Men Accused of Smuggling Tamil Asylum Seekers into Canada
A new trial has been ordered for four men accused of human smuggling in connection to one of the cases that prompted a federal government crackdown on the offence. In a unanimous ruling Wednesday, the B.C. Court of Appeal overturned a January 2013 decisions by the B.C. Supreme Court that found a section of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act was too broad. B.C. Supreme Court Justice Arne Silverman ruled Section 117 infringed on charter rights because humanitarian workers could be prosecuted under the act. Silverman ruled the section was unconstitutional and the charges were dismissed against the men. But B.C. Court of Appeal Justice Kathryn Neilson disagreed, saying the act was not too broad. […] Phillip Rankin, legal counsel for Kanagarajah said the decision was bad for refugee rights. He said the court “moved the gates even wider” on who could be prosecuted under the act. […] Rankin said all four men will be seeking leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada.
Philippine Asian News Today – TFWs, Racism’s Ugly Face, and Permanent Workers
It would seem that many Canadians are angry. They raise their voices against migrant workers, especially against Filipino workers, because according to them, these foreignworkers (meaning we) are taking their jobs, are given more hours and better pay, and are essentially being favoured over Canadians by employers. These angry people call the radio stations, post hateful comments online, and betray their ignorance of the temporary foreign worker program and the situation of the migrant workers themselves. It has not helped that the general media slant on this issue focuses on the migrant workers as the source of all these problems, rather than on the Temporary Foreign Worker Program which is the reason why we have temporary foreign workers. […] We should worry when migrant workers, especially the Filipino migrant workers, are pitted against Canadian workers. This is an open invitation to immigrant bashing, to migrant worker bashing, to racism, to prejudice and discrimination. And it is not contained to just adults, because children do pick up these negative things from the adults around them, and I worry about this racism and discrimination spilling into the playground and the classroom.
La Presse – Les conservateurs critiqués pour un programme de travailleurs étrangers
Le Parti conservateur fait face à de nouvelles critiques, cette fois en lien avec un autre programme fédéral qui permet à des employeurs de faire appel à des travailleurs étrangers temporaires – celui-là sans une évaluation de leurs compétences ni l’obligation de les rémunérer au taux courant du marché. En vertu du programme Expérience internationale Canada, jusqu’à 20 000 travailleurs âgés en 18 et 35 ans entrent au pays au moment où la jeunesse canadienne commence à sillonner les rues à la recherche d’emplois d’été. John McCallum, porte-parole du Parti libéral en matière d’immigration, a semoncé les conservateurs au sujet de ce programme à la Chambre des commune.
Montréal a accueilli environ 750 nouveaux citoyens provenant de 81 pays, au cours de trois cérémonies qui se sont déroulées aujourd’hui au centre-ville. De telles cérémonies démontrent que le gouvernement du Canada travaille à améliorer l’efficacité du programme de citoyenneté, aidant ainsi plus de personnes à réaliser plus rapidement leur rêve de devenir Canadien.
