Canada Immigrants –Caught Between the Devil and the Deep Sea

Is the walk on the path of Canada Immigration a smooth and comfortable journey? Let us really walk on to have a correct answer to our question!

Thousands of people immigrate to Canada every year to study in Canada or for job hunting. A refugee in an alien land will have to put up with an array of problems including language barriers and cultural differences as he starts his life right from the scratch. Very often they face strange situations and are discriminated or excluded from the social stream. This can leave a terrible psychological impact on the refugees.

The odds are stacked clearly against these immigrants as they tackle numerous socio-cultural problems that pose a challenge in their forward sojourn. Immigrants hailing from third world countries like Africa and Asia find the going especially hard. They are not well paid in most cases and they find it very difficult to support a family with the paltry income. In many cases, the refugees find it hard to find decent accommodation as landlords do not let to immigrants for the fear of erratic payment. Not many refugees could own a house even after many years.

Nearly 50% of Somali refugee population feels that they are lonely or are distressed by the way they are featured in the media. It is not the case of just Canada immigration experience; the situation is same in many other Western countries, such as Australia, Finland or the UK. Somalis record the lowest ratings in most indexes of living standards like wages, housing, health or education.

While most of the first generation employees among Somalis remained unemployed, the situation is much better in other immigrant groups like Pakistanis or Iranians. After the immigration process, many refugees feel that they feel intimidated by the officials who treat them in a cheap manner in public places by instructing them rather harshly. Integrating with the society is the most crucial phase in any refugee’s life and in many cases they feel alienated, when they fail to amalgamate seamlessly to the new practices and customs that they are not normally accustomed to.

The first few years of resettlement are particularly crucial as the immigrants face social segregation, under employment or overcrowding, which might lead to suicidal tendencies especially among young males. At several points, the refugees are denied privileges without any valid reason, which makes them depressed as their identity and aristocracy are being questioned.

Racism is yet another challenge that poses dangers during the integration phase. Dishonored by the media and the officials, the refugees might even revolt by turning against the society, which might trigger racist crimes and other destructive activities that would jeopardize the social balance.

Many immigrants reaching to study in Canada need to interact with many officials such as local refugee office or adult education school during the early stages. It goes without saying that public offices very often show apathy to the refugees, which might get them into a difficult situation. Very often refugees also come to Canada to escape from poverty or conflicts in their home country and it is the onus of the administration to find ways and means to make sure that these refugees feel at home in this magnificent country.

Should the refugees really hope for a positive action on this front? Will the system really undergo a change?