No status, no service—no more
Why Toronto should change its tattletale approach to social welfare
Maria Amuchastegui
This Magazine, Sept.-Oct. 2004
When Wendy Maxwell Edwards was sexually assaulted by a security officer
in 2001, she reported it to the police, which set in motion a series of events
that almost saw her deported. Partway through the trial the Crown decided
her testimony wasn’t needed. As an immigrant from Costa Rica living in Toronto
with no legal status, she was then reported to immigration authorities. “Women
with non-status cannot report sexual harassment at work, spousal abuse or
even rape if the result is being punished by deportation,” she says.
It is because of cases like this that a group of activists is lobbying
Toronto council to adopt a policy that would prevent city workers, including
police, from inquiring about the immigration status of people seeking services.
It would also prevent them from passing on information about immigration status
to any federal or provincial agency. “We felt it was essential for a lot
of people we were working with to be able to access services without fear,”
says Sima Zerehi, a campaign organizer with No One Is Illegal.
Zerehi says the idea came about in 2003, after organizers heard of
a similar policy in New York City and began to realize how many of the non-status
people they worked with in immigration detention centres had ended up there
as a result of trying to access city services. Non-status persons, sometimes
called illegal immigrants, are people who entered the country legally but
lost their right to remain here, either because their refugee claim was denied
or they overstayed a tourist visa. Until they are ordered deported or granted
status, they are stuck in a legal limbo, with no official immigration status.
And with an estimated 20,000 to 200,000 non-status persons living in Canada—half
of those in the Toronto area—Zerehi says it’s imperative the city make it
easier for them to access essential services without fear of being reported
to immigration authorities.
Campaign organizers say non-status persons are entitled to services
because the Canadian economy benefits from their labour. “Communities without
status do contribute in a positive way to our economy. There really isn’t
any reason why they shouldn’t be offered adequate services,” says Zerehi.
Police routinely ask about immigration status when investigating unrelated
matters, such as domestic violence complaints. “If, through the normal course
of an investigation, we find people with various immigration statuses, obviously
we communicate that to Immigration Canada,” says Sergeant Jim Muscat of the
Toronto Police Service.
That’s precisely the kind of situation organizers would like to change.
But they realize that even having a policy might not make a difference immediately.
For example, schools in Ontario are required to admit children whose parents
are “unlawfully in Canada.” Yet, according to Martha Mackinnon, executive
director of the Justice for Children and Youth Legal Clinic, about 100 children
were denied access to Toronto schools this past year, even though the school
board has a policy of admitting non-status children. “We took action, and
to our knowledge, everyone was admitted,” she says. “Unfortunately, I think
that we need more work on the implementation of the policy, especially at
a local school level,” concedes school board trustee Bruce Davis.
With the campaign still in its early days, organizers are hopeful.
Mayor David Miller supports the principle that all city residents should have
access to city services: “The general policy in our administration is that,
unless legally obliged, city workers do not ask about immigration status.”
But despite his tacit endorsement and the fact that a variety of community
organizations and three city councillors have come on board, the city’s official
position is that non-status persons already have access to some services,
such as public health nurses and homeless shelters, and that the city is prevented
by provincial legislation from providing other services, such as social housing.
Under the Social Housing Reform Act, for example, every person in the household
must have legal status in order for the entire family to be placed on the
waiting list.
Organizers say their next step is to hold a public forum this fall.
The sooner council addresses the issue, the better, says Cindy Cowan, executive
director of the women’s shelter Nellie’s, who sees first-hand what happens
when women at risk are afraid to call the police and why a policy is necessary.
“It would reduce the fear,” she says, “and enable women to get the support
and services they need.”
Maria Amuchastegui is a freelance writer
living in Toronto. This article first appeared in This Magazine, it
can be viewed at that publication's website here:
http://www.thismagazine.ca/issues/2004/09/noservice.php