Let’s not scapegoat refugee claimants

Shelter crisis existed before asylum seekers arrived, says Louisa Taylor.

Working on refugee issues means having the opportunity to meet inspiring people, both refugees and Canadians, every single day — and almost as often, having to defend those incredible people against labels or policies that just don’t make sense. This is one of those times. Last week, the government of Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced it would no longer help the federal government or municipalities deal with the rising number of people requesting refugee status in Canada, thousands of whom have chosen Ontario. The practical implications of the province’s decision were unclear, but it appears to mean it won’t participate in the efforts to move refugee claimants out of the overcrowded Toronto shelter system to other Ontario cities and develop systems to divert new arrivals to other locations, and it wants nothing to do with distributing the extra $11 million for housing that the Justin Trudeau government has allocated to the province.

The premier’s office said the Trudeau government’s policies “resulted in a housing crisis and threats to the services that Ontario families depend on.”

Later, Social Services Minister Lisa MacLeod (MPP for Nepean) referred to “illegal border crossers” who, she said, had created a “capacity issue” in housing at the municipal level. The provincial government’s solution was to say the federal and municipal governments should sort it out between them.

Let me break this down a bit.

1. Housing is not a refugee claimant problem, it is a Canadian problem. More than 6,700 people were in Ottawa shelters in 2013, long before the current influx of claimants began. Yes, refugee claimants account for around half of the recent spike in demand for family shelter spaces here, but that means there were already thousands of residents in need of housing support. Canadian voters created the acute shortage of affordable housing by failing, election after election, to elect governments that would act. Now the arrival of so many newcomers in need is shining a light on how big this hole in our safety net really is.

2. Blaming refugees for the housing crisis is also Xenophobia 101: When you can’t get your own house in order, blame “outsiders.” Refugees are easy targets, after all — they can’t vote and they don’t want to make waves; they just want a crack at a new life.

3. Disengaging from one of the most urgent pressures facing the province’s biggest city (and smaller centres, including Ottawa) is the wrong move at the worst time. We should be scaling up teamwork, not dissension. The province’s absence will be felt most acutely by the Ontarians working hard to build thriving communities.

4. Stop falling into the trap of referring to people crossing the border as “illegal.”

It is not a crime to cross the Canadian border and ask for asylum — it is a right Canada agreed to respect when we signed the UN Convention on Refugees almost 50 years ago, and that holds true whether someone crosses at an official border point or down a wooded path. Every time you hear someone refer to “illegal border crossers,” bells should ring and alarms should sound. It’s the surest sign that someone is trying to separate you from your humanity and get you to ignore the most fundamental fact: Refugees are people in search of safety, with a legal right to ask for it when they come to Canada.

Finally, and most importantly:

5. What are we really afraid of ? Refugees have proven, throughout our history, that they strengthen communities and economies. They start businesses, create employment, contribute to our vibrant arts and cultural scene, become cherished neighbours and friends, students and leaders — and eventually pay back more in taxes than they use in services.

Minister MacLeod is correct to call this a “capacity issue,” but solving capacity issues requires collaboration. The answer the province seeks is only possible by staying at the table to improve housing options for all. Refugees are builders, dreamers, doers — and Canada needs them all.