Last week the disturbing image of 3-year old Syrian boy Aylan Kurdi’s drowned body trended the globe, leading Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson to hold a town hall meeting to discuss the situation and share information. The event led to a huge outpouring from the community as City Hall flooded with concerned citizens.

Robertson acknowledged steps already underway by the City of Vancouver, including the construction of a 136-bed Welcome House. The facility is currently under construction and will be run by Immigrant Services Society (ISS) of B.C., a local non-profit that assists newcomers with resettlement needs. He also highlighted the work undertaken to establish Vancouver as a Sanctuary City. Sanctuary City is a movement to provide newly settled migrants with access to services without fear, which the mayor claimed to be an important piece the City has been working on along with a number of cities around the world.

In a rare show of advocacy, the mayor called on the federal government to bring in 20,000 refugees by 2020, which would double the number of Syrians the Government of Canada has promised to accept in the coming term, should it be re-elected.

Chris Friesen, Director for ISS B.C., shared some statistics on the situation and Canada’s role to date.

“There is no cap on privately sponsored Syrian individuals in Canada.” Friesen noted that Canada is the only country that provides interest-bearing transportation loans from $15 M allotted annually, 91% of which are repaid by the resettled migrants.”

B.C.’s resettlement target is for 800 refugees per year and Canada has committed to bringing in 10,000 over three years, both as government assisted and private sponsorships. Still, Friesen explained that this number is far lower than what the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) requested, further elaborating that the largest number of resettlement needs actually comes from Africa, not the Middle East.

Eyob Naizghi was a key speaker who shared his migration experience when he came to Canada 35 years ago from Africa. As a UBC-sponsored refugee through the World University Service of Canada, Naizghi has since become Executive Director at MOSAIC, an immigrant and refugee services organization.

Naizghi noted that the refugee crisis is much more than a Syrian crisis. Aylan Kurdi’s image inspired so many people, but while leading western democracies like Sweden and Germany are opening up doors to refugees, other countries are not. Meanwhile, little to no effort has been undertaken in other parts of the Middle East by wealthy oil-rich Arab states.

“History will judge our actions. There are 4.1-5 M Syrian refugees and displaced persons, but there are 60 M worldwide.”

As a refugee, Naizghi recounted walking with others for four weeks, including extended periods without water, but with the common desire to escape. He recounted living in a refugee camp for two months outside of Sudan, which was highly dependent on humanitarian aid from the UNHCR.

“We mustn’t confuse the experiences of immigrants and refugees. Refugees don’t make decisions or plan their trips. They are forced to move with very little resources and information and with little to no preparation; often with nothing on their backs. Imagine the amount of isolation and the build up of trauma.”

As Naizghi put it, many in the North have become desensitized, but a strong level of resilience can be seen in refugees. Historically, Canada has demonstrated compassion. He particularly noted Canada’s responses to crises including the Vietnamese boat people and Kosovo refugees.

“We step up to the plate when action is required. Today we have the experience and organizations that are ready to support. We also have a large group of sponsors, whether church groups, ethnospecific groups, or otherwise.” But in human terms, Naizghi feels as though there is currently a lack of political willingness on the ground.

“20,000 compared to 60 M is a drop in the ocean. What we are doing compared to Germany is a drop in the ocean. We need to change the application process time. It is taking too long and this is not acceptable. We have the means to support them and we should be bringing them now.”

The B.C. government has acknowledged it will give $1 M in support of this initiative. On the ground, there are three immediate things you can do:

1) Donate: be creative in your fundraising activities. Consider donations in lieu of gifts for celebratory events;
2) Volunteer: get involved with local organizations that are already doing the work on the grond; and
3) Sponsorship: think about joining a constituency group with organizations like Rainbow Refugee and Rainbow Railroad.

Foundation of Hope held its first annual general meeting on July 22, 2015. We officially adopted our bylaws, appointed an Executive and Board of Directors, and established a set of standing committees for the coming years – these are the hallmark of sound governance.

Standing committees are the pillars of FOH’s success. They comprise members of the working Board of Directors as a volunteer organization and extend to include the generous volunteer community that has taken membership with the Foundation. This level of administrative support is just as important as financial contributions from generous donors and FOH is grateful for the level of individual and corporate contributions made to date. Success is enabled by effective fundraising efforts, strong levels of community engagement, and continual grant funding to eligible non-profit and non-governmental organizations doing the legwork on the ground.

Foundation of Hope’s efforts are ultimately intended to help individual LGBT+ refugees and asylum seekers, both as newcomers to Canada and across the world, in order to successfully accomplish its mission.

I can’t believe is already September! In the time since STRUT, our flagship fundraiser, we are thrilled to report that we are growing up fast as an organization and getting geared up for giving. And ’tis the season indeed, considering the looming refugee crises across the world, foremost of which has been escalating in Syria following the onset of the civil war and ensuing political turmoil in the Middle East.

The Syrian war was the initiate for FOH. Several of us were part of the original constituency group that sponsored two Syrian gay men to come to Canada. The Foundation emerged from that original Circle of Hope and through fundraising efforts and an online granting program, FOH has recently been formally approached to financially contribute to a growing movement known as Lifeline Syria. Sponsorship of LGBT+ refugees and asylum seekers is one of two streams of funding that FOH offers.

Community services is the other stream of FOH grant funding. Foundation of Hope has been approached to assist with counselling services intended to help LBGT+ newcomers overcome emotional and psychological barriers associated with migration from their countries of origin. These are countries that denounce the right to freely express alternative forms of gender and sexual identity.

Moving forward, Foundation of Hope is actively accepting applications from eligible applicant organizations and is continually seeking individuals and organizations that are interested in contributing through volunteers efforts and as donors.

Contact Foundation of Hope today and consider becoming a member, either as a volunteer or through generous contributions. Or better yet both!

I recently accompanied a young Indian man to meet with Chris Morrissey at Rainbow Refugee’s drop-in session at Qmunity. He is looking at options that would prevent him from having to return to India, which has recently criminalized homosexuality, thereby putting him at risk of persecution. When his work visa expires, his family back home expects him to return and they intend to marry him off.

According to Morrissey, he has an option to file an in-Canada refugee claim, largely based on his country of origin due to the recent regressive legislation that directly jeopardizes homosexuals in India. The new law was recently instated under India’s criminal code. Family pressure to get married is one thing, but under this law, individuals have no recourse, since the state doesn’t support their sexual identities.

In the case of Indian LGBT+ individuals seeking asylum, chances for a successful refugee claim are improved in Canada. Claimants must first get a lawyer for the hearing. Legal aid is an option available to many that don’t have the means to finance themselves. They should feel comfortable being represented and will need to make sure they can prove their country of origin.

A great deal of planning and preparation goes into a refugee claim. It is necessary to supply evidence to support one’s sexual identity. Every written account and piece of supporting testimony must be consistent. Questions asked at hearings can be somewhat uncomfortable, partly because agents at the hearing will have to make a decision in writing. So they need to clearly understand the position and must document the evidence to support their decisions.

According to Morrissey, a refugee application to Canada also has a medical waiver (i.e., the individual does not have to meet the medical requirements that are otherwise necessary under general immigration protocol). Having some non-communicable medical condition such as cancer, diabetes, HIV,  etc… does not make it impossible to get a refugee claim, whereas applying for immigration as skilled worker with a disease automatically makes you medically ineligible.

“People often think they are ineligible based on these grounds and ‘self-select’ out”, stated Morrissey, founder of Rainbow Refugees Society. Any health-related issues that may exist can intuitively be perceived as a challenge to a successful claim; however, under India’s new law, Chris figures it could actually bolster a refugee claim. Perceptions of disease may put individuals exceedingly at risk of persecution in society, particularly due to India’s history as a caste society.

“Diseased people will be treated as untouchable within their own family, even though parents love their kids,” stated the young man who met with Chris. “It puts them under excessive pressure and improves the chances for making wrong decisions. Without any perceived love and support from family, how can they expect love and support from society?”

Every refugee claimant must have a reasonably well-founded fear of persecution.

“It is important to distinguish between persecution and discrimination”, noted Chris. An article under the 1951 Geneva Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, of which Canada is a signatory, states that persecution is implicit if individuals cannot get state protection. Persecution is explicit in situations where the state has legally denounced certain sexual identities, such as in India.