Lori Wilkinson: What Rights Do Immigrants And Refugees Have In Canada?

Canada is recognized as a world leader in promoting and protecting human rights. However, in some spheres, Canada struggles to address long-standing human rights challenges, including discrimination and at worst, detention.

Our guest in this episode of Community Hour is Lori Wilkinson. She is a professor in the Department of Sociology and Criminology at the University of Manitoba and the director of Immigration Research West. Wilkinson heads an international study of the socio-economic and mental health outcomes of immigrants, refugees, and racialized people in Canada, the USA, and Mexico.

Her recent research includes a co-edited book, Understanding the Outcomes of Refugees-Canada and Germany Compared (2020), and a co-edited issue of Canadian Diversity (Spring 2020).

She volunteers with several national and local community organizations. She has won several awards, including the Metropolis Researcher Award, Professor of the Year, the Faculty of Arts Teaching Excellence Award, and the Dr. and Mrs. Ralph Campbell Award for Outstanding Contributions to Service for her work with the immigrant and refugee settlement community and with students.

Lori Wilkinson says the government must ensure settlement agencies are well-funded. This year Canada expects 421000 immigrant immigrants and refugees to come to Canada:

"Immigrants do a very significant job. 25% of Canada’s population were not born here. If they get good settlement services at the start of their integrated process, then they can get a job faster, get kids into school faster, and learn English faster. The faster they can facilitate that, the happier they will be. We had a bunch of research that shows that if your initial resettlement period was positive, you are more likely to have a good job, be healthier, and be happier later on in life."

Her research showed that around nine per cent of refugees actually go back to the country of conflict. This is because they can’t set up properly here and mostly because they do not feel welcome.

That’s a lot of people to resettle. Having a successful initial resettlement experience costs less for the government in along run.

The government must talk to and listen to resettlement agencies and immigrants and refugees themselves. When we do the studies we ask refugees “What would you tell the government, what advice would you give to them?” So listening to the people, who get the services, is really important as well.