International Migrants Day 2023

According to the World Bank's World Development Report 2023, at this very moment, there are approximately 184 million people, or 2.3 percent of the world's population, living outside of their country of nationality (World Bank, 2023). Migrants serve as a living connection between cultures, bringing with them important knowledge, practices, skills and experiences. Whether they are workers, students, family or creators, they both contribute to their current environment and retain strong links to their home, offering different insights and perspectives. This equitable exchange is the cornerstone of sustainable development and progress.

Yet, all too frequently, migrants face numerous hardships in their new countries. Many have left their families behind in order to provide for them by working abroad and sending their income home. Parents have sent their young children to study abroad in hopes of a better future, leaving them not only under-prepared for a life away from their families at such a young age, but also with a sense of displacement so far from their own culture and heritage. Still others leave to provide unpaid care work for dependent family or relations. These individuals are often caught in a prolonged sense of liminality, marginalized and lacking a feeling of belonging in their new home.

December 18 is International Migrants Day, a day to recognize the benefits of having migrants contributing to local economies, and also the hardships they face. Migrants enrich our lives and our communities, and we can do so much more to provide them with a place where they belong. This could come in the form of housing assistance, healthcare, lower tuition for international students and fair income for temporary migrant workers. There are many in the world who are also forcibly displaced due to climate crises or international conflict. In Sudan, for example, millions have been displaced in the last six months due to a civil war led by rival military factions. This form of migration is very different from migration for development, but the migrants themselves are no less deserving of support and care.

In Canada, migrants are essential for the multicultural mosaic that makes up the fabric of our nation. Migrants in Canada enrich our communities and strengthen our bonds with global partners, contributing to our food security, care sector and education system, just to name a few. They bring incredible value to society and we must provide the necessary supports to ensure that they are included and settled within their new communities, be they students, workers or refugees. We have depended on migrants in our agricultural sector, in our classrooms, and in our hospitals; the social and economic contributions they bring cannot be overstated.

However, many are not necessarily very well-treated. As Naomi Hunter expressed in an edition of 100 Sisters on Security, "I personally have seen situations where farmers were using the Temporary Foreign Worker program and some of what I've seen is shocking [...] It's an incredibly corrupt program. There is no guarantee when people are brought over on that program that they will receive permit residency. It's basically slave labour" (G100 Security and Defence - Ontario, 2023).

While Canada speaks with compassion for those who are displaced around the world, it does not do enough for the migrants who are already here. Food banks in Canada are closing their doors to international students (Bhugra, 2023), while asylum seekers are forced to sleep on the streets of Toronto (Balintec, 2023). According to Human Rights Watch, people in immigration detention, including those with disabilities, are "regularly handcuffed and shackled" and "can be detained for months or years" (Human Rights Watch, 2023). The statement issued today by the Government of Canada states, "We continue to encourage international partners to put in place regular migration and protection pathways, and we also support them in their efforts to settle and integrate newcomers" (Refugees and Citizenship Canada Immigration, 2023) but makes no mention of their own practices or their own mistreatment of migrants. If the Government of Canada is truly sincere about their appreciation of the invaluable contributions made by migrants every day, this should be a day for discussing legitimate action plans for improvement.

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Balintec, V. (2023, October 6). Asylum seekers are sleeping on Toronto streets again. How did we end up here? | CBC News. CBC. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/asylum-seekers-toronto-streets-1.6987824

Bhugra, S. (2023, November 10). “No International Students!!” As need grows, Brampton food bank turning some away | CBC News. CBC. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/no-international-students-as-need-grows-brampton-food-bank-turning-some-away-1.7024375

G100 Security and Defence - Ontario (Director). (2023, November 29). 1x04 100 Sisters on Security: Food Security and the Agricultural Sector. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9YcAG3EE-8

Human Rights Watch. (2023). Canada: Events of 2022. In World Report 2023. https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2023/country-chapters/canada

Refugees and Citizenship Canada Immigration. (2023, December 18). Statement for International Migrants Day [Statements]. https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/news/2023/12/statement-for-international-migrants-day.html

World Bank. (2023). World Development Report 2023: Migrants, Refugees, and Societies. Washington, DC : World Bank. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/39696