Free Movement’s Post

A must read by on the significant barriers women on temporary visas or as dependent’s face when trying to escape family violence. We need urgent immigration reform and far more Federal funding to provide the protections needed to women and children.

All our problems are now solved.🤷🏾♀️ No need for emergency legislation to deal with #homelessness #costofliving #poverty #claddingscandal #Windrushscandal #childpoverty the proliferation of #foodbanks, long hospital waiting lists, high interests rates, overworked GPs, unaffordable rents, lack of #dentists etc etc etc We will now be sending a couple hundred asylum seekers to the very SAFE #Rwanda. 🤦🏽♀️And all will be well. Ironic that this bill has finally passed on the very same day I'm speaking at a conference organised by NACCOM and the British Red Cross in #Bedford looking at housing solutions for destitute and #homeless #migrants. We all believe that everyone, irrespective of anything, should have a safe, decent and affordable roof over their heads. #Housing is a basic human right. It is not a luxury. It is not a reward for being obedient. Miranda Grell John Bird Free Movement Colin Yeo Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants #ukhousing #homelessness Simon Cook Aileen Evans Bridget Young Rachael Williamson CIHM CIM The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) The Social Housing Round Table Homes England Black Equity Organisation

IDC, Migration Youth & Children Platform and UNICEF are pleased to invite you to a multistakeholder side event of the Global Conference on Justice for Children Deprived of Liberty on "Global Perspectives on Ending Child Immigration Detention". This event will feature panelists from youth, civil society, government and UN agencies to discuss momentums and regressions, and the way forward for global advocacy to achieve GCM Objective 13. Amid increasing global and regional dialogues on migration, children and youth on the move continue to be deprived of liberty by virtue of their status, with at least 77 countries legally allowing the detention of children in their national laws. This side event takes place during the Global Compact for Migration (GCM) Regional Reviews, in the lead up to the 2025 Global Forum for Migration & Development and 2026 International Migration Review Forum, and building upon the Advocacy Brief by the Taskforce for Children Deprived of Liberty. We welcome you to join our discussion where we hope to support global advocacy and mobilisation around ending child immigration detention, and promote community-based alternatives which uphold the rights and welfare of every child on the move. 🗓 18 December 2024 🕛 15:30-16:45 CET 📍 Hybrid (Online and CICG Geneva) Register now: bit.ly/atdevent2024

Despite the government promising a cost of living budget, it is shockingly silent on refugees and people seeking asylum, some of the most vulnerable in our community. There is no restoration of a safety net for people seeking safety, who face the terrifying prospect of today's Senate vote on the deportation and entry ban bill. In #Budget2024, the ASC welcomes increased funding for refugee settlement services, measures for refugees arriving from Gaza and Ukraine, and $1b to set up the new merits review system (ART) so it can "finalise 100 per cent of case lodgements each year". But we are deeply concerned by... 🔍 $20m drop in financial support for people seeking asylum to $17m - 0.85% of the yearly funding for border enforcement measures. 🔍 Major underspending on financial support payments to people seeking asylum by $21m in the last year, with many we support unable to access payments due to strict eligibility criteria. 🔍 No additional places in the Refugee and Humanitarian Program. 🔍 The cruel offshore detention regime remains well-funded with $604 million for offshore processing on Nauru. 🔍 No funding to increase the provision of work or study rights for people seeking asylum. 🔍 Minimal increases ($1.9m and $900K) to extend Medicare access for Bridging E Visa holders from Ukraine, Palestine, and Israel. 🔍 No movement on granting people seeking asylum with a disability access to NDIS payments. 🔍 No extension of childcare subsidies to people seeking asylum. 🔍 Zero additional funding to states and territories to support people seeking asylum with increased access to homelessness support.

How the 2024 Election Impacts the Refugees We Serve ❤️💙 As the election approaches, immigration is a hot topic. But not all immigrants are the same. Refugees are here after fleeing war or persecution, and with the blessing of the State Department. They have legal work status and active in our communities, but refugees don’t have a voice like most of us. Because of a 5-year wait to become citizens, many refugees can’t yet vote. They are some of the most vulnerable members of our community but can’t vote for change. Advocacy for refugees is in the hands of voters like us. Over 50,000 refugees call Dallas home, with thousands in other cities across the U.S. As we head into this pivotal election, it’s essential to know who immigrants are so we don’t marginalize and disempower future citizens through sweeping generalizations. We've included a chart outlining the differences between immigration statuses. Policies resulting from the upcoming election could impact our refugee friends in profound ways. Now is the time to stand with our refugee neighbors and make their voices heard through our vote. Supporting organizations like Vickery Trading Company is more important than ever. Your support helps ensure seamless services and continuing advocacy, regardless of policy changes. #2024Election #VickeryTradingCo #WeWelcomeRefugees #Refugees #MadeByRefugees #RefugeesWelcome #NonProfitWork #JobTraining #Sewing #NonProfitDallas #DallasVolunteering

People should not need to become illegal immigrants, asylum seekers or refugees. All people should be able to thrive and prosper wherever the are in the world. All those that are within a position of authority should be successful in looking after the welfare of people, because that is the main purpose of authority. People should be able to prosper where they are born and raised and should not need to flee their home. People should be able to choose relocated for a positive reason and not because it’s their only option. Every situation where there is any level of pain and suffering breaks my heart to pieces and I know that it is the same for many other people. It is normal human nature to want other people to be doing well and to not want to see them in pain and suffering. No one should need to climb on a boat and end up dying while they are trying to find safety. The real issue that causes the pain and suffering is always rooted in corruption. Something needs to be done about the corruption that continues to lead to illegal immigrants, asylum seekers, refugees, modern day slavery, trafficking, abuse, violence, strife, wars etc. #illegalimmigrants #asylumseekers #refugees #moderndayslavery #government #authority #prosper #welfare #home #safety #stopcorruption

📣Here's our latest Substack post! "An Uncertain Future for Immigrants in the US" by Ana Milena Ribero, discussing what is on the line this election for undocumented immigrants and refugees. 🔗https://lnkd.in/eTdAxBg8 #TeamRhetoric #AcademicChatter #Vote #Immigrants

Asylum seekers arrive with nothing but the weight of what they've left behind: cherished memories, livelihoods, and connections severed in pursuit of safety. CIAC stands by those who were lawyers, doctors, and educators in their homelands, eager to contribute their expertise here. Yet, the reality for many #asylumseekers is stark: penniless and struggling to meet basic needs. While awaiting asylum decisions, which can drag on for years, they exist in a state of uncertainty, barred from employment and reliant on scant government assistance. Without access to public funds, housing, or work, they are vulnerable to homelessness, abuse, and exploitation. At CIAC we are here to help and to connect cultures and change lives. 🌐 We're proud to provide a low-cost fee services and extensive pro bono assistance to those in need. With five dedicated staff and ten volunteers from nine nationalities, CIAC is a diverse organisation making a difference in our ever changing community. #CIAC #ImmigrationSupport #immigrationadvice #asylumadvice #refugees #AsylumSeekers #refusedasylumseekers #eeamigrants #migrants #immigration #asylum

Today, I had the pleasure of representing the National Right to Housing Network, as we join colleagues at the Migrants' Rights Network, Canadian Council for Refugees, Immigrant Workers Centre, the Post Graduate Work Permit Holders Committee, and Migrant Workers Alliance for Change to speak out against Minister Miller's propsed immigration cuts in Canada. I am angry. Angry as a human rights advocate and as a housing advocate. These immigration cuts are a dangerous distraction from the real solutions we need to address Canada's housing crisis. Experts have been clear: the housing crisis is driven by systemic issues like: 🏘️ Under-investment in non-market housing (social, non-profit, and cooperative housing). 🏘️Lack of regulation of investors who commodify housing rather than treat it as a human right. 🏘️Insufficient protections for renters against renovictions, discrimination, and unfair rent hikes. The federal government knows this. This is the government that passed the National Housing Strategy Act in 2019, recognizing housing as a human right. In fact just earlier this year, they introduced important measures like: 📜 Funding for tenant organizing and policy solutions 📜 Investments in non-market housing 📜 An encampment response fund to implement rights-based housing solutions 📜 A Renter Bill of Rights These are steps in the right direction, but we need rights based policies like these – not divisive rhetoric blaming the housing crisis on immigration. With over 235,000 people experiencing homelessness and shelters stretched beyond capacity, the solution isn’t scapegoating migrants, asylum seekers, or refugees. This is not an immigration problem – it is a housing and underfunding problem. Let us be clear: immigration is part of the solution to the housing crisis, not the cause. Migrants, international students, temporary foreign workers, and undocumented people are not to blame for Canada’s housing, economic, or infrastructure challenges. Today, I join my colleagues in calling on Canada’s political leaders – including Prime Minister Trudeau – to: 👉 Stop immigration cuts 👉 End systemic exploitation and racist rhetoric 👉 Focus on addressing the real, systemic causes of Canada’s housing crisis We must do better. We can do better. To watch the full press conference: https://lnkd.in/euedXcMr #RightToHousing #HumanRights #HousingCrisis #Immigration #Canada

The Supreme Court of Canada granted leave in a very interesting case called Kanyinda this morning, prompting some procedural reflections on my part: https://lnkd.in/eC6wj3iv The case involves a constitutional equality challenge to the exclusion of refugee claimants from a subsidized daycare programme. K won at the Court of Appeal: the remedy was to read refugee claimants into the regulation detailing admissibility to the programme. K also brought an unsuccessful common law vires challenge to the regulation in question, on the basis that it was discriminatory, which I posted about recently: https://lnkd.in/eQZDh6Tz I wonder if the common law vires challenge can be considered on the appeal? K did not seek leave to cross-appeal. But under Rule 29(3) of the Supreme Court rules, "A respondent who seeks to uphold the judgment appealed from on a ground not relied on in the reasons for that judgment may do so in the respondent’s factum without applying for leave to cross-appeal". Given that the judgment of the Court of Appeal 'read in' the protection of refugee claimants because the constitutional challenge was successful, perhaps the common law discrimination ground would not allow K to "uphold the judgment appealed from". I had to give some thought to Rule 29(3) recently in a leave application with Adam Goldenberg on the other side and do not have a settled view on the scope of the provision. Comments welcome!