U.S. President Donald Trump regularly asserts that the United States is under attack by foreign invaders and that he is the only one willing to stop them. Who are these invaders? Central American asylum seekers, mostly from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.
Amnesty International calls this region “one of the world’s most violent places, with more people killed there than in most conflict zones globally.” Médecins Sans Frontières says that the “violence suffered by people in (these countries) is comparable to the experience in war zones where MSF has been present for decades.”
Much of this violence is caused by…
In our view, housing is a human right, a hugely important factor in the settlement process and a key prerequisite for the enjoyment of health, employment, and a life of quality. But both refugee claimants and precarious migrants, including rejected asylum seekers, are particularly vulnerable to violations of their right to adequate housing.
Precarious migrants are often in an insecure housing situation, as an inability to pay rent usually results in immediate eviction. …
CO-DIRECTORS MESSAGE
We are very grateful to all our supporters for helping us to keep walking with refugees and other precarious populations during 2018. Thanks to you we were able to provide information for refugee claimants and for people who need support in regards to their immigration status and how they can further their situation in Canada.
Access to Education was one of the main achievements for us. We were able to send 17 youth with precarious immigration status to post-secondary education. …
This past year, I spent 8 months as a placement student at FCJ Refugee Centre. What I really loved about my time there is the mix of a busy, fast paced environment with the vast amount of love and passion that everyone there brings. I worked on a team led by Diana, who seems to be working on a million cases at once, with a combination of other students and staff. …
Sharing stories of FCJ Refugee Centre volunteers:
My name is J.P. and I am a 1st year law student at the University of Toronto
Volunteering at FCJ was undoubtedly one of the highlights of my first semester. I can truly say that I’ve never been in a place where so many people are helping others in such critical ways. Each Friday, I observe FCJ staff running educational workshops for youth, meeting with a seemingly constant stream of clients, and liaising over the phone with Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada to resolve client issues. …
A READY TOUR STORY
I am from Uganda and in 2016 I was a newcomer and refugee claimant in Toronto Canada, I had a hard time sourcing for information to help me prepare for my hearing. As newcomers, we all have this challenge, most of us keep consulting with friends who end up sharing inaccurate information.
During my time as a volunteer at the Access Alliance, the LGBTQ+ newcomer coordinator Ranjith Kulatilake was so supportive. He made an effort to make sure we are all equipped with the right information for the services we need.
One day he asked me…
The shoes’ story
On a Monday morning in the middle of November, a man donated twelve formal, high quality shoes to the clients of FCJ Refugee Centre. For Fabian, who came to Canada as a refugee fourteen years ago, nice shoes represent an important part of creating a new life here. They can give you confidence and dignity when you are going in for an interview or event, and already going through a difficult time.
Fabian is from Colombia and had a beautiful life before he was forced to leave. He married his high school sweetheart and they had a young daughter and…
We are working with other communities in Toronto organizing a series of events across GTA . To check the calendar of the event click here: http://www.fcjrefugeecentre.org/2018/10/canonization-of-first-human-rights-ombudsman-in-el-salvador-monsignor-oscar-romero/
Join us on October 25 Thursday October 25th at 6:00 PM
Church of the Holy Trinity, 19 Trinity Square (Yonge and Dundas)
DISPOSSESSION AND EXCLUSION IN OUR TIME: TRANSFORMING OUR REALITY WITH MONSIGNOR ROMERO
Keynote speaker: Juan Vicente Chopin, Dean of Faculty of Theology at Don Bosco University in El Salvador
Monsignor Romero spoke out against injustice and brought attention to the underprivileged and the dispossessed. Today we see this type of dispossession through…
Toronto Canada, July 14, 2018- Nowadays, there are millions of people on the move around the world — they fled their country of origin in search of a better life. Canada is one of the countries which welcome refugees regardless of their religion, color, ethnicity group and any other barrier to promote human values.
FCJ Refugee Centre is one of the leading agencies in Toronto in walking with refugees side by side, helping them in make them enjoy their time and feel at home in their new community.
Every year FCJ Refugee Centre celebrates diversity and the welcoming spirit of…
By Sohaila Khaliqyar
Toronto, Canada, April 2018- It has never been easy to be a refugee. Facing new challenges, such as accommodating to a new environment and transforming and applying the learned knowledge and experience into a new community is impossible without continuous support of government and community centres in catalysing the process of integration. Among internationally trained professionals in various fields, physicians who invested a lot in their field and earned many years of education and experience in their home country, now have to deal with a long process of getting a job as a physician in Canada.
FCJ Refugee Centre, an…
FCJ Refugee Centre
Walking with uprooted people
