Submission to The Social Lens: A Social Work Action Blog by Community of Practice 4 as part of SOWK 550
The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to well-intentioned phrases such as “We are all in this together.” Cue the warm and fuzzy feelings. Only the truth of the matter is we are not all in this together…at least not in the same way. Currently the Canadian border is closed to refugees, which begs the question: is running for your life not essential?
We are a group of MSW students who came together virtually as a Community of Practice (CoP) to discuss, learn, and share topics related to social justice. Through our CoP, we have discovered that our shared passion for social justice offers us a site of resistance to oppression and empowers us to take action. As a collective group, we recognize the urgency of addressing the ongoing refugee crisis amid the emerging COVID-19 crisis.
We argue that refugee “travel” into Canada is essential and are asking the Canadian government to protect refugees who are knocking at our door. We do not position ourselves as experts on this matter; rather, we position ourselves as allies in the hopes of raising otherwise marginalized voices. We acknowledge that we are writing this blog post as a group of white Canadian-born citizens who are far removed from the perils of being forcibly displaced from our homes and the people we love.
The issue
As COVID-19 surges on, the Canadian border is legally closed to all non-essential travel. Where does that leave refugees? Refugee claimants “travel” as they flee their home country and are in desperate need of protection. Persecution rages on, despite a global pandemic, and those who are most vulnerable suffer immeasurable consequences.
Due to the Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA), when refugees arrive in Canada at a port of entry from the US, they are turned back to be detained in a US prison or are sent home to die. This agreement mandates those fleeing human rights abuses in their home country to apply for status in the first country they arrive in. Detention in the US is appalling in a multitude of ways, including lack of adequate health care, children separated from their parents, kids being held in cages, and being subject to sexual abuse. In July 2020, the Canadian Federal Court declared the STCA unconstitutional. Even though these practices violate the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the government is appealing this decision.
In Canada, the term refugee has been used to decide who gets to enter and who is not the preferable race based on a racialized hierarchy. Who is considered illegal on stolen land? Our very refugee protection system is a colonial system. Refugees often flee racism and additional intersecting oppressions, only to arrive in Canada to experience further racism.
Canada has granted travel exemptions for hockey teams, university students, and compassionate cases. Meanwhile, refugees are also experiencing a pandemic in addition to persecution in their country of origin, and yet Canada is denying them access to safety.
While we recognize Canada’s efforts in welcoming refugees, we think the Canadian government too often wears the humanitarian badge of honour for rescuing refugees without acknowledging the current policies that are oppressing refugees within our arbitrary border lines. This zeroes in on how the structures are systematically arranged to protect and extend the privileges of the dominant group. As a group of social workers, we advocate that travel exemptions extend to refugees—truly essential travel—and that Canada implement its decision to abolish the STCA.
Anti-Oppressive Practice
Anti-Oppressive Practice is a framework that acknowledges that society is not equal and that many people’s lives are influenced by macro oppression, such as policies from capitalist governments. People’s lives are also impacted by micro levels of oppression such as social norms, everyday practices, societal values, identities, and so-called common sense (Baines & Sharma, n.d.).
Clearly, refugees are being oppressed by the STCA as well as by the Canadian government’s newly imposed idea of “Essential Travel” induced by COVID-19. Hence, refugees are being simultaneously oppressed by government, international policies, as well as social norms and societal values. We are seeing people whose lives are at risk being turned away from “essential travel” as well as being forced to stay in unsafe situations by those with power and privilege. At the same time, privileged people such as celebrity hockey players get to cross the border for entertainment reasons.
As a CoP group, we have all come to the agreement that Canadian nationalist values are currently taking precedence over an International Human Right for Refugees to have the right to seek asylum. We have chosen to utilize Anti-Oppressive Practice to combat this current injustice as it stresses the importance of taking social action to liberate the marginalized and the oppressed, and it stresses that social work is a highly politicized practice (Baines and Sharma). We have decided we will not stand by and passively watch this injustice go unnoticed.
Taking action
Centering the voices of the marginalized and those most affected by human rights issues is a priority in addressing the inequality in “essential travel.” For us, coming together as a CoP has provided us with an opportunity to go beyond examining the oppression of refugees who are begging for essential travel during COVID-19. This process has inspired us to take action. We have come together as a form of consciousness-raising to speak out about the urgency of this issue.
We have written a letter to Canada’s Minister of Public Safety Bill Blair and Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Marco Mendicino to let them know directly that we care about this issue. If you are interested in learning more about this important issue and are wanting to take action, you can join the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers (CARL) campaign to tell Ottawa that refugee travel is essential. See the resources we have posted below for more ways to get involved with refugees in Vancouver.
December 3, 2020
Dear Ministers Mendicino and Blair:
Re: Refugee travel into Canada is essential, including during COVID-19
End the Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA)
We write as a group of concerned Social Workers attending the University of British Columbia Masters of Social Work Program to express our concern that refugees are being denied access to cross the border into Canada because of COVID-19 travel restrictions, and to voice our opposition to the Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA). We urge you to categorize refugee travel over the border as essential, and we urge you to implement the dissolution of the Safe Third Country Agreement.
We are a group of Social Workers coming together through our MSW program, specifically through the Social Work and Social Justice Class Community of Practice, focusing on anti-racism. During the pandemic we have been searching for ways to come together and the community of practice has been an important part of our learning, coming together for weekly small group discussions to integrate the research and lectures, and pull from our over 40+ years of combined Social Work Experience. A majority of us have worked with immigration and refugee serving non-profits, or in Health Care programs that serve refugees, at points in our careers.
The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to well-intentioned phrases such as “We are all in this together.” Only the truth of the matter is we are not all in this together…at least not in the same way. While fostering a sense of hope and unity is paramount during these unprecedented times, it must be pointed out that many people are being left out of this collective sentiment. We take our cue to write this letter from the Canadian Bar Association who has written to you on this topic.
There have been many exemptions to Canadian border closures since the start of COVID-19. There have been exceptions for essential workers, family members, and even hockey players and other professional athletes crossing the border to play hockey in Canada. This begs the question: why are hockey players allowed into Canada during the pandemic, but refugees are not? This opposing dichotomy shines light on which form of Canadian national identity is more important to uphold during times of crisis—our commitment to human rights or cheering on the good ol’ hockey game?
Due to the Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA) when refugees arrive in Canada at a port of entry from the US, they are turned back to be detained in a US prison or are sent home to die. This agreement mandates those fleeing human right abuses in their home country to apply for status in the first country they arrive in. Detention in the US is inhumane and appalling in a multitude of ways, including lack of adequate health care, infants and children separated from their parents and documented cases of being held in cages, and being subject to sexual abuse. In July 2020, the Canadian Federal Court declared the STCA unconstitutional. Even though these practices violate the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the government is appealing this decision. We implore the government to rescind this appeal, and implement the dissolution of STCA.
In 1950, the UN created the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), which passed the Convention and Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees in 1951. The UNHRC defined a refugee as “someone who is outside of his or her own country and unable to return as a result of a well-founded fear of persecution on grounds of race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership of a social group” (UNHRC, 2020). Everyone should have the right to be safe and free from political persecution or persecution based on who they are.
The first value of the Canadian Social Work Code of Ethics is: “Respect for the Inherent Dignity and Worth of Persons.” Given our code of ethics and care for refugees we have known through our work or as friends, we cannot be silent on this issue. We implore you to allow refugees to cross the border into Canada during COVID-19, and give them the same border exceptions afforded to so many others who are in less dire circumstances. We urge you to drop the appeal of STCA, and implement measures to create policy and procedures around IRB systems without STCA immediately.
Yours truly,
UBC School of Social Work MSW students
Resources
References
Baines, D., & Sharma, A. (n.d.). Anti-Oppressive Practice Theory. Article in press. University of Sydney.
The Social Lens: A Social Work Action Blog - The views and opinions expressed in this blog are solely those of the original author(s) and do not express the views of the UBC School of Social Work and/or the other contributors to the blog. The blog aims to uphold the School's values and mission.
