This Monday, I (finally) started my LiA project at Faithful Companions of Jesus (FCJ) Refugee Center in Toronto, Canada! Simply getting to this point was a bit of a whirlwind due to some work permit processing issues, but luckily everything has been sorted. FCJ, although fairly small in terms of staff, provides an incredibly wide range of free services to immigrants and refugees in the Toronto area. I will mostly be working with their in-house lawyer to help refugees file Humanitarian & Compassionate applications. These applications allow people who do not meet the requirements of refugee status but are still unable to return to their home country due to violence, political persecution, etc. to gain permanent residence in Canada. Although this diverges quite a bit from my research last summer, it felt important for me to learn about the barriers immigrants of all nationalities face today, and to help people in need where I can.
I am still learning a lot of the legal terminology, processes, and the names of everyone at the center, but I think I am settling in decently well. Yesterday, I finished updating an application for a Venezuelan refugee to include more information about the conditions there. I was also going to meet with one of FCJ's clients, but he said he wanted to talk next week instead. Things have been somewhat slow while adjusting but I expect them to pick up fast!
Today, I helped FCJ run their annual street fair for all of their staff members, friends, and past and present clients. There was homemade food from all over the world, musical performances, and a pinata for all of the kids to hit at the end of the day. It was a lot of fun and it was nice to learn more about Toronto's diverse immigrant population. Although I am focusing on the legal side of immigration for my LiA, I think that being able to find a support system and community in a new country is an equally important aspect of immigrating. Looking forward to week two, can't wait to update you all soon!