In 2017, Montreal’s Olympic Stadium was converted into a shelter for asylum seekers arriving from the border with the United States. GEOFF ROBINS/AFP
Long a balanced immigration model, the country is now facing a migration crisis, the result of policy decisions that are destabilizing Canadians and newcomers alike.
To Montreal
“Welcome Newcomers,” announces an ad from the National Bank of Canada on a huge screen not far from the border police counter at Montreal airport. A few meters from the customs officers, a column of hundreds of immigrants waits to be processed by the immigration authorities. Veiled women stand side by side with young French women in tight leggings. Sikhs with colorful turbans wait near the wise Philippines. The busy planet dreams of Canada. She’ll find out soon. Descending from the Berri-Uqam terminus in downtown Montreal, the airport shuttle drops off newcomers in the heart of this Latin American neighborhood, where thousands of French students continue their studies and where hundreds of “Quêteux” (beggars) have invaded the surrounding area .
There, migrants live abandoned on the streets, while accommodation and hotels for asylum seekers are overcrowded. Many men have lost their minds and are screaming at the top of their lungs…
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