refugee

A worker moves luggage trolleys outside Vancouver International Airport in Richmond, B.C., on Thursday, December 31, 2020. The B.C. government announced in March 2024 it is upping its annual spending on newcomer services from $6 million to $25.6 million. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

B.C. allots record $25.6M in annual funding for newcomer services

New programs expected to serve more than 40,000 people per year, up from 26,000

 

Abeer Smadi started the health cultural ambassador program to help combat mental health stigma among refugees and immigrants. So far, it has helped 400 people receive mental health assistance. (News Staff/Thomas Eley)

‘Tackling stigma’ Victoria group aims to help immigrants, refugees

The group helped more than 400 individuals

 

Palestinians carry a dead person from under the rubble of a destroyed house following an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City, Saturday, Nov. 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Abed Khaled)

Israeli warplanes hit refugee camps in Gaza Strip, killing scores

Strike comes despite calls from U.S. for fighting pause to aid civilians

 

A newly released memo shows federal officials warned last spring that expanding a bilateral refugee pact to the entire Canada-U.S. border would likely fuel smuggling networks and encourage people to seek more dangerous, remote crossing routes. A family from Haiti approach a tent in Saint-Bernard-de-Lacolle, Quebec, stationed by Royal Canadian Mounted Police, as they haul their luggage down Roxham Road in Champlain, N.Y., on August 7, 2017. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Charles Krupa

Canada-U.S. refugee pact changes expected to ‘exacerbate existing threats’: memo

The memo also warned that organized crime groups might use shifting irregular migration routes

A newly released memo shows federal officials warned last spring that expanding a bilateral refugee pact to the entire Canada-U.S. border would likely fuel smuggling networks and encourage people to seek more dangerous, remote crossing routes. A family from Haiti approach a tent in Saint-Bernard-de-Lacolle, Quebec, stationed by Royal Canadian Mounted Police, as they haul their luggage down Roxham Road in Champlain, N.Y., on August 7, 2017. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Charles Krupa
Paul Canary Kanyamu marches with Reaching ‘Out’ for LGBTQ and Allies of Brechin United Church, during Nanaimo’s Pride Parade on June 11. (Mandy Moraes/News Bulletin)

LGBTQ refugees feel at home in B.C. after fleeing violence and oppression

Ugandan couple grateful for the welcome they’ve received on Vancouver Island

  • Jul 7, 2023
Paul Canary Kanyamu marches with Reaching ‘Out’ for LGBTQ and Allies of Brechin United Church, during Nanaimo’s Pride Parade on June 11. (Mandy Moraes/News Bulletin)
Human rights activist Paul Canary Kanyamu is shown in a handout photo. Kanyamu says life felt like “hell on Earth” before he escaped Africa and found refuge in Vancouver about two months ago. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO

After escaping violence and persecution, LGBTQ refugees find peace in Canada

Paul Canary Kanyamu says life felt like “hell on Earth” before he…

Human rights activist Paul Canary Kanyamu is shown in a handout photo. Kanyamu says life felt like “hell on Earth” before he escaped Africa and found refuge in Vancouver about two months ago. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO
(L-R) Tim, Makar, Brynn, Talia, Vera Gileff, and Antonina Kozelets are some of the Maple Ridge Christian School students who have come together to offer Ukrainian refugees free ESL classes every Thursday. (Maple Ridge Christian School/Special to The News)

B.C. students provide free English lessons to Ukrainian refugees

Multi-lingual students host lessons at Maple Ridge Christian School every Thursday

(L-R) Tim, Makar, Brynn, Talia, Vera Gileff, and Antonina Kozelets are some of the Maple Ridge Christian School students who have come together to offer Ukrainian refugees free ESL classes every Thursday. (Maple Ridge Christian School/Special to The News)
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister Sean Fraser speaks during a news conference Wednesday, April 6, 2022 in Ottawa. The federal government says it will make it easier for temporary residents in Canada from Turkey and Syria to extend their stay in the country after a powerful earthquake struck their countries last month. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

Canada to accept more Syrian, Turkish residents after earthquake

Feds to prioritize processing temporary visas for those impacted by natural disaster

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister Sean Fraser speaks during a news conference Wednesday, April 6, 2022 in Ottawa. The federal government says it will make it easier for temporary residents in Canada from Turkey and Syria to extend their stay in the country after a powerful earthquake struck their countries last month. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
Bill Nighy arrives at the Oscars on Sunday, March 12, 2023, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)

Did you see the blue ribbons worn by many at the Oscars? Here’s what they mean

#WithRefugees ribbons Sunday sent a message supporting the right to seek safety

Bill Nighy arrives at the Oscars on Sunday, March 12, 2023, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)
Viacheslav Samsonenko, a Ukrainian newcomer who fled his home country in May, poses in Saanichiton, B.C., on Friday, Feb. 24, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito

Ukrainians welcomed in workplace, but still finding jobs below their qualifications

Employers often fail to recognize education and work experience from outside of Canada

Viacheslav Samsonenko, a Ukrainian newcomer who fled his home country in May, poses in Saanichiton, B.C., on Friday, Feb. 24, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito
Victoriya Latli and Denys Popov arrived in Revelstoke in the summer of 2022. (Zachary Delaney/Revelstoke Review)

‘I remember everything’: Ukrainians in Revelstoke reflect on a year of war in Ukraine

It’s been one year today since Russia invaded Ukraine

Victoriya Latli and Denys Popov arrived in Revelstoke in the summer of 2022. (Zachary Delaney/Revelstoke Review)
Yuliia Kleban, from Ukraine, poses for a photograph near her work in Toronto on Wednesday, February 8, 2023. Kleban along with other Ukrainian refugees are living in Canada as the first anniversary of the Russian war nears. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

Ukrainian newcomers assess options in Canada year after war at home

More than 150,000 Ukrainians made their way to Canada under a special program since conflict began

Yuliia Kleban, from Ukraine, poses for a photograph near her work in Toronto on Wednesday, February 8, 2023. Kleban along with other Ukrainian refugees are living in Canada as the first anniversary of the Russian war nears. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
Ukrainian peewee hockey player Zahar Kovalenko carries his bag as head coach Evgheniy Pysarenko walks behind as they arrive, Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2023, at the Videotron Centre in Quebec City. The Ukraine team will compete at the Quebec international peewee tournament. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot

Hockey team of preteen Ukrainian refugees arrives in Quebec City for tournament

Their coach described the team’s presence at noted peewee tourney as ‘almost a miracle’

Ukrainian peewee hockey player Zahar Kovalenko carries his bag as head coach Evgheniy Pysarenko walks behind as they arrive, Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2023, at the Videotron Centre in Quebec City. The Ukraine team will compete at the Quebec international peewee tournament. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot
Grace Mukadzambo is a Courtenay resident who was to be deported to her native Zimbabwe, but the deportation order has been cancelled. Paul Bozenich photo

B.C. resident facing deportation gets 11th-hour reprieve while packing her bags

Community members, elected officials rally behind plight of Grace Mukadzambo

Grace Mukadzambo is a Courtenay resident who was to be deported to her native Zimbabwe, but the deportation order has been cancelled. Paul Bozenich photo
Vitali Hrechka poses for a photo with his wife Evelina, daughter Emiliia, and mother Hanna, after the St. Nicholas Day celebration at St. Demetrius Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Toronto on Sunday, Dec. 18, 2022. The family recently arrived in Canada after leaving their home in Ukraine’s Transkarpathia region. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

Ukrainians who fled war set to mark first Christmas in Canada, far from loved ones

Many newcomers are women and children, separated from male members of their family

Vitali Hrechka poses for a photo with his wife Evelina, daughter Emiliia, and mother Hanna, after the St. Nicholas Day celebration at St. Demetrius Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Toronto on Sunday, Dec. 18, 2022. The family recently arrived in Canada after leaving their home in Ukraine’s Transkarpathia region. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young
Taliban security personnel carry a damaged bus after a roadside bomb blast in Mazar-e Sharif, the capital city of Balkh province, in northern Afghanistan, Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2022. A Taliban official says that a roadside bomb went off near a government bus in northern Afghanistan, killing several people. (AP Photo)

Refugee group says Ottawa will help bring 600 LGBTQ Afghans to Canada

Immigration department would not confirm the move, citing security risks

Taliban security personnel carry a damaged bus after a roadside bomb blast in Mazar-e Sharif, the capital city of Balkh province, in northern Afghanistan, Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2022. A Taliban official says that a roadside bomb went off near a government bus in northern Afghanistan, killing several people. (AP Photo)
Inna Fomina, who came to Canada to take refuge from the war in Ukraine, stands with her son Adrian Derevianko, 10-month-old, outside their home in Ottawa, on Monday, Oct. 31, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang

Ukrainian refugees embrace peace and quiet in Canada as war rages on

Inna Fomina’s story one of horror and displacement, but also one of hope and resilience

Inna Fomina, who came to Canada to take refuge from the war in Ukraine, stands with her son Adrian Derevianko, 10-month-old, outside their home in Ottawa, on Monday, Oct. 31, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
FILE - Venezuelan migrants walk across the Rio Bravo towards the United States border to surrender to the border patrol, from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, Oct. 13, 2022. President Joe Biden last week invoked a Trump-era rule known as Title 42, which Biden’s own Justice Department is fighting in court, to deny Venezuelans fleeing their crisis-torn country the chance to request asylum at the border. The rule, first invoked by Trump in 2020, uses emergency public health authority to allow the United States to keep migrants from seeking asylum at the border, based on the need to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. (AP Photo/Christian Chavez, File)

Biden turning to Trump-era rule to expel Venezuelan migrants

President denying Venezuelans the chance to request asylum ahead of midterm elections

FILE - Venezuelan migrants walk across the Rio Bravo towards the United States border to surrender to the border patrol, from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, Oct. 13, 2022. President Joe Biden last week invoked a Trump-era rule known as Title 42, which Biden’s own Justice Department is fighting in court, to deny Venezuelans fleeing their crisis-torn country the chance to request asylum at the border. The rule, first invoked by Trump in 2020, uses emergency public health authority to allow the United States to keep migrants from seeking asylum at the border, based on the need to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. (AP Photo/Christian Chavez, File)
Ghazaleh Nozamani talking about the current protests in her home country of Iran at her house in Yarrow on Oct. 3, 2022. (Paul Henderson/ Chilliwack Progress)

B.C. woman from Iran once tortured by the Revolutionary Guard ponders her country’s future

‘They are killing innocent women or hitting them in the middle of the street because of a piece of fabric’

Ghazaleh Nozamani talking about the current protests in her home country of Iran at her house in Yarrow on Oct. 3, 2022. (Paul Henderson/ Chilliwack Progress)
Family members reunited in Newfoundland in October as about 177 new Ukrainian refugees landed in the Canadian province. (The Canadian Press/screenshot)

VIDEO: Ukrainians fleeing Russian attacks arrive in Newfoundland

About 177 refugees were welcomed by the province

Family members reunited in Newfoundland in October as about 177 new Ukrainian refugees landed in the Canadian province. (The Canadian Press/screenshot)