|
|
So it becomes longer and longer, so when they ask you a certain paper, then you have to get it from your country, and knowing that us refugees aren't always allowed to communicate with our country in an open way because of security, you get really worried. The biggest fear we had was to get our request for refugee status declined, or the status of... When you are not accepted, you are waiting to receive a letter to ask you to leave the country. Me, I didn't experience that, but there are some people that could not explain their situation in a proper and reasonable manner. And it's difficult because it's people that have difficulties and they cannot go back to their own country, and this country cannot welcome them, and they are limited financially so they cannot always buy the tickets, etc, and all of that. When you know that this could happen that's a sufficient reason to be scared all the time. So on the day of your audit, even those who don't have faith pray to God so that it goes well, because it's an important step to know if you will live here or you will leave.
I admit that at the level of normal life we live in a relaxed way, but keeping in mind that you don't know what tomorrow will be like and everything is provisory. For example I cannot buy a TV because I don't know if I will leave tomorrow, and I will be asked to leave. So each time you push back to tomorrow what you could otherwise have today. And for employment, it's a lot of pain, because when they know that you are refugee they can treat you miserably because they know that you cannot protest because you aren't complete enough, so these are things that you need to bear. But at the level of immigration, I think things are fine because anyways, they give you a lawyer who follows your case with you and he's paid for by the government, but it's at the level of practical life that it's hard. Yeah...
É: When you say that it was hard to find a job here as a refugee in Canada, do you find that the fact that, for example, you didn't speak English in Montréal, was that bad, or, do you think that since the recognition of your education was not ideal, then that played more of a role? Did that bother you?
M: Well in terms of recognition of education from my country, I totally put away my degrees and my experiences to become the man of the masses who can work anywhere. I worked in the fields, with the black smiths, in fact; I did stuff that I would never have thought to do with all my experience. I forgot all my studies, for example, because you don't have any choice, because if you don't do it, you don't live so you do anything. In going to work in the fields, for example, I don't go as a journalist or as someone with a University degree; I do it as someone who needs money to live. With regards to the job, with regards to the language, with regards to an ideal that you would want to get, English is an obstacle in terms of administrative work. And since for me my diplomas aren't recognized and I am not seen as someone that possesses a certain type of skills, but as an immigrant, as a refugee, then we work with agencies that send you work in factories to lift boxes. Everyday work that is not desired.
But me I had the chance to get a job with the Welcoming Service for Newcomers as an agent of welcoming and communications. English would be a problem if only the patrons were not mostly Francophone. Otherwise, after six months, after this job that was subsidized by Québec Employment, I had trouble finding another job, because if I was going to do similar work, English was necessary and even if Montréal is Québec and Québec is Francophone, you are always asked to have a second language- English. For me who's coming from a Francophone country, yes, but where French is spoken only after having been to school, that's a double difficulty for me, because I am an immigrant, I am Black, and it's that sort of thing that did not necessarily help me. So I found myself working in factories, lifting boxes because I didn't have choice or otherwise I would die. I always told myself that I never wanted to go on welfare and I needed to do it, but then I could never do it because I am a public person. I am someone who goes out and talks to people. I don't want to have to answer to the question about what I do with my life, because you can't dare tell people that you're on welfare because it's not valorising, and me I say that I have already attained enough in my personality without having to experience this.
So, for me, welfare, it's not that I can't, it's not that it's bad or inferior, but I know that physically there are still things I can do, and I prefer go to work and forget my degrees and do whatever instead of going on welfare. Because I say to myself that when I volunteer and do activities, then I can still speak out loud and keep my head up instead of... But I admit that it was not easy, and if I was not studying right now, the difficulties would continue because English is an important tool to have as an asset, and then the other thing is that I am still new and even if I am resident now, I am still new and an immigrant to the eyes of many, so I am still someone that's not from here. And managers know that, and they take advantage of it, because they know you can't fight for your rights. People from here do it, with force, but if you're from elsewhere, you're still from elsewhere so even if it isn't said to you directly, you still can feel people's attitude.
|
Tags
You must be logged in to add tags.
|
Writer Profile
Je suis étudiante en économie du développement au Canada, présentement volontaire en prise en charge socioéconomique des personnes vivant avec le VIH SIDA au Burkina Faso. Je m'intéresse particulièment aux mouvements sociaux et aux questions d'équité et d'oppression.
|
Comments
You must be a TakingITGlobal member to post a comment. Sign up for free or login.
|
|
