Quaker Refugee Committee worker Eusebio Garcia assists a client in his office at Friends House Toronto.
Crossing an international border does not negate a person’s human rights. Refugee rights are human rights.
Refugees are neither terrorists nor criminals.
Asylum is not a security threat.
Refugees are vulnerable people – not perpetrators.
~ from “Rethinking Security: Refuge, Power and Privilege”
CFSC works in partnership with the Quaker Refugee Committee of Toronto Monthly Meeting and the Canadian Council for Refugees to promote refugee rights in Canada. The first-hand experience of the volunteers who visit the detention centre provides deep insight into the Canadian refugee protection system.
In 2006, CFSC produced a discussion paper that lays out some aspects of refugee rights issues that still concern us today. We invite you to read Rethinking Security: Refuge, Power & Privilege.
The landscape of refugee rights in Canada is highly fluid at this time and we encourage you to visit the Canadian Council of Refugee’s website for up-to-date information and actions. CFSC is a member of the CCR.
Refugee Resettlement in Ontario
The Quaker Refugee Committee (QRC) of Toronto Monthly Meeting also provides refugee resettlement services and receives operational funding from CFSC.
The QRC assists refugee claimants in securing refugee protection in Canada: this includes help with filling forms, information about applying for work permits, health care coverage, obtaining necessary documents, putting them in touch with legal services. They also help refugees in finding housing, advising on educational options and openings, putting them in touch with source on employment and training information. This resettlement counseling service is conducted by Eusebio Garcia, staff, in English or Spanish as necessary.
Immigration Holding Centre, Rexdale, Toronto
The QRC helps detainees at the Immigration and Refugee Detention Centre at Rexdale and Martin Grove in Toronto with meeting legal requirements, obtain necessary additional documents, and inform them about other services that may be of assistance to them. This work is done with the oversight of the Detention Committee of the Toronto Refugee Affairs Council, of which they are a member. Staff and members of the committee have been visiting the detention centre weekly since the beginning of the service more than twenty years ago, inspired by the example of Nancy Pocock.
In any given year, the QRC helps 300+ refugees to obtain Convention Refugee Status, and about 600 in the detention centre with their legal and information needs.
The QRC also organizes a summer camp on Labour Day weekend at Camp Neekaunis on Georgian Bay. As many as 80 refugee campers of all ages enjoy the chance to be out of town and immersed in the bounty of Canada’s nature. The annual Children’s Christmas Party spreads cheer, especially for those experiencing a Canadian winter for the first time.
Eusebio Garcia can be contacted at 416-964-9669
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