Vaccines for All Campaign Launched
The Migrant Rights Network (MRN) held a press conference on
February 24 to launch its Vaccines For All national campaign. The aim
of the campaign is to "ensure full access to the COVID-19 vaccine to
all migrants regardless of immigration status" in a safe and equitable
way.
The press conference featured five speakers. Lily, a frontline care
worker from the Caribbean shared her experience of coming to Canada to
work as a live-in caregiver, leaving her three children behind. Her
work permit expired before she was able to find stable work to fulfill
the requirements for permanent status. She pointed out that she,
like others of her peers without status, is unable to get vaccinated
because she has no health card. She stated that undocumented workers
live in constant fear and cannot access basic rights to healthcare,
housing, social services and legal rights, and now to the vaccine. She
highlighted that undocumented workers are part of Canadian society,
contribute
to it and must be protected.
Dr. Danyaal Raza, a member of Canadian Doctors for Medicare and a
physician at St. Michael's Hospital in downtown Toronto called on
governments to take practical action to ensure that all people without
status are vaccinated as a matter of right and part of the efforts to
bring the pandemic under control. He also stated that his organization
supports the fight for all migrants to have permanent status to end
their criminalization and enable them to live with dignity. Dr. Raza
said he also opposed the concept of "earned status" such as the Quebec
government has implemented to "reward" some migrants and refugees for doing
"essential" frontline work, pointing out that status and healthcare are
a matter of basic rights.
 Pauline Worsfold, a nurse, and Chair of the Canadian Health Coalition and Secretary Treasurer
of the Canadian
Federation of Nurses Unions said that her organizations support the
Vaccines for All campaign. She noted that all migrant workers have to
be part of the vaccine rollout and that the principles of the Canada
Health Act of universal,
accessible and comprehensive health care must be upheld so that
everyone can get the vaccine regardless of their status.
Byron Cruz of Sanctuary Health in Vancouver and the BC Federation of
Labour highlighted the role of migrant workers on the front lines doing
"essential" work in Canada, many of whom have to wait for three months
after arriving in Canada to access health care services. Thousands of
migrant workers have become infected and three migrant
agricultural workers have died in Ontario as a consequence of not
having protection and medical assistance in a timely fashion, he noted.
He highlighted that the BC Federation of Labour has been working with
the provincial government to find ways and means to vaccinate all
migrant workers including those without status.
Samira, a young worker and a member of Solidarity Across Borders,
has been living in Montreal without status for eight years. After
working a number of low-paying jobs she was forced to quit in order to
look after her mother. She said that she was afraid of leaving her
dwelling now for fear of being questioned by police and the curfew now
imposed in Quebec has made life even more stressful. She called for an
end to the criminalization of migrant workers and for status for all.
On behalf of MRN, Syed Hussan, the moderator of the press
conference, called on governments at all levels to work with health
authorities and migrant rights organizations to take immediate action
to ensure that all migrant workers including those without status have
access to free COVID-19 vaccines and underscored the importance of
fighting
for full and equal status for all migrant workers. He called on
everyone to join the campaign, to sign the MRN's Vaccines for All
petition here, and to get others involved.
This article was published in
February 26, 2021 - No. 11
Article Link:
https://cpcml.ca/WF2021/Articles/WO08112.HTM
Website: www.cpcml.ca
Email: editor@cpcml.ca
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