OTTAWA—The federal government signalled Dec. 2 that Canada could welcome as many as 50,000 refugees by the end of 2016 as Gov. Gen. David Johnston urged Canadians to embrace those fleeing the conflict in Syria.
Calling Canada’s response to the crisis a “defining moment” for the country, Johnston hosted a forum that brought federal, provincial, and municipal political leaders together with heads of business organizations and aid groups trying to better co-ordinate efforts to deal with the impending influx of 25,000 refugees by the end of February.
“This is a defining moment for Canada, a defining moment for all of us,” Johnston told the gathering.
“And it’s even more than that. It’s an opportunity ... to re-imagine how we take care of the most marginalized and vulnerable among us.”
Immigration Minister John McCallum told a morning panel at the forum that he’s concerned the current level of enthusiasm among Canadians for bringing in refugees will be lost if governments and aid organizations don’t properly communicate.
“There’s nothing that will turn the momentum off more than if people want to help [but] they get no answer at the other end of the phone or they don’t know who to phone,” said McCallum.
“There is a momentum today. Whether there will be two weeks from today is something we can’t take for granted, and we have to work on.”
McCallum also said he’s concerned about a “backlash” against refugees if there’s a perception that they are queue jumping ahead of low-income Canadians who’ve waited months or even years for subsidized social housing—something other levels of government have said they need to ensure doesn’t happen.
