Challenges yet unmet

Friday marked the one-year anniversary of the day the first Syrian refugees arrived in Canada. It is a time to celebrate the considerable accomplishment of taking in 25,000 refugees, of helping them settle and get a start building new lives.

But it’s also a time to reflect on challenges yet unmet, and on problems growing unchecked.

Canadians can be proud to be among the world leaders in terms of being welcoming to people displaced by conflict.

According to the UN, 4.8 million people have fled the region for sanctuary in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt and Iraq, and another 6.6 million are internally displaced inside Syria. Another million have requested asylum in Europe.

While Canada’s resettlement campaign has not been without problems and controversy, it has gone relatively smoothly.

Many can attest to the rewards and affirmation they have experienced through helping sponsor refugees or assist them in some other manner.

Those people, and others who have supported the initiative, can be proud of what the country has accomplished so far. But what comes next is not easy, either. Federal funding for many refugee families was intended to last one year, which means some are already moving to provincial assistance if they haven’t found employment — which many have.

That transfer of support will put already stretched provincial treasuries under more pressure. The federal government has hinted it will provide more support, and it needs to do so as soon as possible.

But that’s not all the government needs to do.

The main reason more refugees have not found work is English proficiency. Language training programs have been overwhelmed and inadequate.

The feds need to provide more money and support to expand language training and associated resources. This is particularly true for government-sponsored refugees who tend to have greater need and support than those under the umbrella of private sponsorship.

Language proficiency is the single biggest factor in successful integration, and it must have adequate investment.

That and other logistical issues are daunting enough, but there is an even bigger one.

Bigotry and xenophobia are the elephants in the room — and they’re getting bigger.

The intolerance demonstrated by Donald Trump and his supporters may have been a trigger, but the same sentiments have always existed in Canada.

For proof, look no further than the Chinese head tax, and subsequent racist immigration policies directed at Chinese immigrants. Or Canada’s rejection of thousands of Jews looking for refuge in the decade before the Second World War.

We have been down those ugly roads, and we believe most decent Canadians don’t want to go there again. But the voices of those who do are growing louder.

If we want a pluralistic Canada, we have to speak up for it, or run the risk of the sort of division and polarization now being experienced in America.

Refugees still facing hurdles year after arrival