Posted on 08/02/2017 4:06:12 PM PDT by rarestia
An increasing wave of Haitian refugee claimants forced officials to open a temporary shelter in the Olympic Stadium Wednesday while scrambling to keep up with a demand that shows no signs of slowing down.
The first busload of asylum seekers arrived at the stadium early Wednesday morning. About 150 beds had been set up over the weekend.
Francine Dupuis, who oversees PRAIDA, a government-funded program to help refugees get on their feet in Quebec, said the number of refugee claimants in recent months is unprecedented.
Most of the current arrivals are Haitians fleeing the United States because they fear their temporary resident status in that country will be revoked. Hoping to find connect with Montreals deep-rooted Haitian community, theyre crossing the border into Quebec.
Its unheard of, Dupuis said. In 30 years, Ive never seen this kind of volume or intensity.
Dupuis said about 90 per cent of asylum seekers coming into Quebec are now Haitian. In July, PRAIDA received 1,200 new requests, she said, close to four times more than an average month.
Were doing our best, but obviously theres going to be a limit. And were close to that limit.
The situation started in May when United States President Donald Trump threatened to remove the temporary protected status granted to nearly 60,000 Haitians living in the country. The status had been granted in the aftermath of the 2010 earthquake that devastated Haiti.
In a series of Tweets, Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre welcomed the refugees on Wednesday, calling the effort a humanitarian gesture.
Coderre said the city was working closely with the provincial and federal governments on the issue, and called the situation another consequence of Trumps immigration politics. The city of Montreal did not return the Gazettes interview requests on Wednesday.
Provincial government officials will be holding a press conference Thursday to address the situation.
But I dont think anybody has the answers, Dupuis said. Nobody knows when its going to stop. At one point I think the government will have to make a decision do we continue to receive them, and if we do, where are the resources going to come from?
Marjorie Villefranche, director general of the community centre Maison dHaiti, said she started hearing from Haitian families in New York and Florida as early as May.
Theyve been panicking, Villefranche said. Theyre vulnerable people who do not want to return to Haiti because of how difficult a situation it would be for them. They prefer to try their chances in Canada.
Figures compiled by the Canadian Border Services Agency indicate Quebec has become Canadas main entry point for refugees. The CBSA figures show that of the 4,345 people who either sought asylum at border stations or were intercepted by police while trying to enter Canada in the first six months of 2017, 3,350 were recorded in Quebec.
PRAIDA offers medical, nursing and psychosocial services to asylum seekers, hosting them in a dozen locations across Montreal in empty schools, rehab centres, hotels and YMCAs while helping them with the required paperwork for refugees.
Running out of other options to keep up with the recent surge, the agency reached out to the Olympic Stadium for help.
Olympic Park spokesperson Cédric Essiminy said stadium officials were approached on Friday about the idea of hosting refugees for the next couple of months.
He said they were happy to participate in the effort.
As of Wednesday morning, the stadium had 150 beds set up in a communal space in its western hall, where caregivers will be using a nearby concession stand to prepare and distribute food. Refugees will also have access to roughly 20 showers in an unused team locker room in the basement. Essiminy said the space could accommodate up to 450 beds.
Hosting the refugees will not affect any of the stadiums activities, Essiminy said.
The same space in the stadium was used for H1N1 vaccinations in 2009. It was also set up, beds and all, to host people from the neighbourhood who were without electricity during the 1998 ice storm, but ended up not being used when power was restored.
We dont have any experience with this kind of thing specifically, but we can be a good host, Essiminy said. The Olympic Stadium is 40 years old. Were used to being part of the history of Montreal, in any way whatsoever.
Is the stadium used for anything since the Expos left? Minor league baseball? Soccer? Canadian football?
Canada is welcome to all the Haitians they want.
The reason Haiti is such a mess is that it full of Haitians.
No. no, no. No limit por vous mon freres. Embrace your pinko suck.
We better get started on that northern border fence. Gonna need it reeeeal soooooooon
In Quebec they have French in common.
do we continue to receive them, and if we do, where are the resources going to come from?They should ask the Clintons and the Clinton Foundation...But maybe they fear being murdered if they bring up anything about Haiti or Haitian relief funds.
Canadians will be bred out of existence by refugees.
PING
Haitians? They come to Miami.
More winning.
Even California rebuilds quicker than that.
Yep. They all sound just thrilled about it.
Karma!
I noticed comments at The Montreal Gazette seem to be closed.
I am guessing it was filled with Americans making fun of them for opposing sealing our border and promising to funnel as many illegals into Canada as are willing to go there as we throw them out.
Which is of course what I intended to say there as well.
I was just in Calgary and couldn’t believe all the...diversity.
Starting with the rudest driver I’ve EVER encountered.
Who remembers in South Florida having fruit trees in your front yard before the Haitians arrived and would drive up at night and began stripping all of the fruit from your trees? Oh, you could buy them back at the swap shop or some flea market later if you were lucky, no discount of course. Send them to Ontario.
them dark dusky french chicks aint gonna, oh no you didn’t,,,yep
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.