The Migrant Mothers Project (MMP) is pleased to release Unprotected, Unrecognized: Canadian Immigration Policy and Violence Against Women, 2008-2013 a report that examines how recent changes in immigration policy are negatively impacting immigrant women. The MMP is also launching, Till Immigration Tears Us Apart: Stories of Strength through Struggle, a collection of digital stories by migrant women and their advocates.
The Migrant Mothers Project is a collaborative research project led by Rupaleem Bhuyan at the University of Toronto in partnership with a network of community groups working to address violence against immigrant women.
Findings from Unprotected, Unrecognized illustrate how many groups of immigrant women are vulnerable to abuse from their spouse or employer, but have fewer options to seek safety without fearing detention or deportation. It details how sweeping federal policy changes are restricting family sponsorship and reunification, limiting refugee and immigrants’ access to health care and social assistance, while increasing the rate of detention and deportation of immigrants and refugees in Canada. Lastly, the report highlights how community and grassroots groups across Canada are advocating for broader protections for immigrant women.
The Till Immigration Tears Us Apart provides firsthand accounts on the struggles facing immigrant women who are non-status or who have a temporary or precarious immigration status. It illustrates how immigration policies impact migrant women’s efforts to support themselves and their families.
We extend our gratitude to women living with precarious immigration status, social and health service providers, grassroots activists, lawyers and educators, whose knowledges and wisdom inspired this report.
The report and the digital stories can both be found in our website: http://migrantmothersproject.com/
Featured @UofTNews, http://bit.ly/1v9IP1k
We welcome your questions and thoughts. Contact us at migrantmothersproject@gmail.com
Sincerely yours,
Rupaleem Bhuyan
University of Toronto