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PRESBYTERIAN
The Presbyterian Church in Canada • presbyterian.ca ISSUE 8, WINTER 2018
Compassion and Justice for Refugees
On Sept. 29, 2018, the Ride for Refuge annual fundraiser took place in Pierrefonds, Quebec.
By Paul Clarke, Executive Director of Action Réfugiés Montréal
“Now I know I am not alone.’’
These were the words of a guest who attended our Refugee Rights Day event in April. We had invited people seeking refuge and other friends of Action Réfugiés Montréal to gather to celebrate the fact that Canada is a country that provides protection to people who fear persecution. As is the case every year, more than 175 guests joined us in solidarity. A few days earlier, the man quoted above had asked Canada for refuge. I saw him again at World Refugee Day fes-
tivities on June 20.
Action Réfugiés Montréal was
founded in 1994 by the Rev. Dr. Glynis Williams, who currently serves as Associate Secretary, International Ministries, at the PCC church offices in Toronto. It began as and continues to be a joint ministry of The Pres- byterian Church in Canada and the Anglican Diocese of Montreal. Glynis had a vision that people seeking pro- tection in Canada could count on the accompaniment of those who cared
for them and cared about them. And that the ministry would be supported by people of faith. From very humble beginnings, the one-person organi- zation now has six employees run- ning four programs, including our newly established monthly Men’s Group. We are proud of our website at actionr.org.
Uniquely, we visit people detained for immigration reasons at the Immi- gration Holding Centre in Laval. This former prison is operated by the Can- ada Border Services Agency. Action Réfugiés Montréal has an agreement to visit inside the common rooms of the facility. We provide legal infor- mation to the refugee claimants we meet. We provide moral support to over 400 people and give away over 1,000 long-distance phone calling cards every year, allowing them to connect with family and friends. We were so pleased that the PCC Wom- en’s Missionary Society provided a grant to support this phone card min- istry this year. We meet mainly men, but also women and some children. In Matthew’s Gospel, we are called to welcome strangers and visit peo-
ple who have been imprisoned. Our detention program has been doing precisely this for 25 years.
Once people are released from de- tention, we stay in touch if they reach out to us. We have recently started a Men’s Group in collaboration with another community organization. We gather the men once a month for an activity and a meal. I have learned that people from other countries are often experts on a soccer pitch! We have discussed banking, elections and the best ways to integrate into Canadian society. One young man we met in detention has been faith- fully attending our monthly meals. He was very worried about his upcoming hearing to assess his application for protection. He came by our office on the way to his appointment and we tried to give him hope. Off he went to his meeting. He texted a few minutes later: “I have acceptance!” (sic) He came back to the office a little later, because he wanted to celebrate with the people he called “his family.”
For many years we have welcomed newcomers through our Twinning Program. We match women who
Action Réfugiés Montréal staff gathered at a sugar shack event when they introduced 55 newcomers to maple syrup.
have lived a refugee trajectory with Montreal-area female residents. They meet regularly to help strengthen a social network for the newcomer. We hold many group activities to intro- duce the women to life in Montreal, and to promote friendship, solidarity and mutual understanding. We have learned this is a two-way intercul- tural street. As one local participant who wanted to help has told us:
“Spending time together has been an excellent way for our family to practice French, but it has also cre- ated a real sense of gratitude and un- derstanding. At dinner time, we now go around the table and each person in our family talks about something that they are grateful for—I believe this sense of empathy that is being instilled in my children and in our
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A Christmas Story
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Presbyterian Gatherings
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Celebrating Refugee Sponsorship
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