Immigration, Xenophobia and Equality Rights

One can readily identify a number of factors that, over the last ten years or so, have combined to reduce and destabilize the legal status and social standing of non-citizens who are seeking to enter or remain in Canada. Particularly conspicuous are the amendments to our refugee and citizenship laws that were introduced by the government that held power from the 2006 election until 2015, especially those harsh measures that were introduced after the government obtained a majority in the legislature in 2011.1 The changes in question were extensive and far-reaching. A shortlist of wellknown examples indicates the scope. Prompted by concerns about fraud, families have been kept apart by provisions that, for example, rede�� ned who could sponsor. 2 Prompted by economic reasons, older children were removed from the list of dependants who could be sponsored, even in circumstances where they were clearly dependent on their parent.3