They came to Toronto for safety. Instead African asylum seekers faced racism, homelessness, says new report
Several cultural and faith-based community organizations "banded together" to house and support the influx of refugee asylum seekers coming into the city at the time — many of whom had been forced to sleep on the streets without adequate municipal support, unable to access the city's overflowing shelter system — says Nadine Miller, the church's executive director.
"We became a house. We became mother, father, medical doctor, the whole nine yards until we could get [the government] to step in," said Miller.
"[Asylum seekers] couldn't get in. They were stuck outside of the system."
Two years later, a new study by United Way Greater Toronto has detailed systemic anti-Black racism faced by newcomers in the Greater Toronto Area in 2023 — most of whom were Black and from African countries — as well as failures within the government system. The report also offers solutions needed to ensure asylum seekers don't end up on the streets and in churches again.
Toronto's ombudsman had previously found that the city's decision to limit refugees' access to shelter beds for several months in 2023 was anti-Black racism. The city manager disagreed with that finding last year.
At the time, Black-led groups were able to move more than 200 asylum seekers from the streets of downtown Toronto to shelters in indoor shelters, many of them churches.
Refugees denied jobs, faced foreign credential bias: report
The United Way study was done in partnership with the City of Toronto, and with the support of the Region of Peel and the Regional Municipality of York — areas that reported the most significant challenges.
While a lack of housing and employment were the biggest issues, asylum seekers also struggled with language barriers and limited access to responsive legal support, the report found.
Participants in the report shared their experiences of being unable to secure housing as refugees and getting denied jobs due to racism and foreign credential bias.
"Until this topic comes to the table, and society itself comes to discuss it, nothing is going to be changed," a service provider said in the report.
For the report's lead researcher, Jean de Dieu Basabose, the investigation resonated with his own experience of arriving in Canada from Rwanda in 2018.
Basabose says he too struggled to find a stable job as a newcomer, but he luckily found housing through friends. For asylum seekers, he says "racism came as an extra layer of challenge."
"This form of discrimination is deeply embedded in everyday life and institutions and it undermines the entire settlement process. And that makes it harder for African asylum seekers to find belonging and stability," he said.
While many study participants called for government intervention going forward, Basabose says social services need to do more to address cultural sensitivity and provide trauma-informed services for refugees.Report includes 29 recommendations
The report included 29 recommendations organized into three categories: programs and services, investments, and policy. Among them, a call for a centralized hub in the Greater Toronto Area to support African asylum seekers access reliable information and culturally-informed services.
It also recommended anti-racism training and increased government funding to community organizations.
Miller says Pilgrim Feast Tabernacles luckily had extra money to take people in in 2023, but the federal government should have taken more responsibility to support newcomers.
"If you're going to bring people in, you also need to take the responsibility of making sure that you put something in place just in case they are going to say that they need asylum," she said.
Some change already underway
Debbie Douglas, the executive director of the Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants, says Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has started a Canada-wide pilot project to support grassroots Black and racialized organizations through funding.
"We have lots of work to do on the ground," said Douglas, "[The funding] shows that there is a recognition that over the decades … Black communities have basically been sidelined and have been left out of that funding stream."
But Douglas says the eligibility criteria for IRCC funding is limited and doesn't include services for refugee claimants.
IRCC spokesperson Julia Lafortune said in an emailed statement Tuesday that the federal government contributes to social services costs, but that managing and delivering those services comes down to provincial and municipal governments.
"We recognize that when asylum seekers quickly get the services they need, they are better able to support themselves and ultimately, contribute to Canadian communities," she said, adding asylum claimants are eligible for federally-funded health-care coverage.
Lafortune said the federal government has invested $1.5 billion since 2017 to support lower levels of government with housing needs for asylum claimants, of which $670 million went to the City of Toronto and $98 million went to the Region of Peel.
The City of Toronto, meanwhile, says work is underway on a dedicated refugee shelter system that includes settlement support and culturally responsive services.
In an emailed statement, the city said the initiative will include Toronto's first Black-led and Black-mandated shelter.
"But the City cannot meet this challenge alone," the statement read. "The City continues to advocate for sustainable, long-term funding and a coordinated regional response from all orders of government to manage the growing demand for emergency shelter and ensure new arrivals are welcomed with dignity."
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
What We Talk About When We Talk About the Right of Return
My mother-in-law, Fatima, can't read or write. She speaks only colloquial Palestinian Arabic and stops walking after just a few steps because of debilitating arthritis in her knees. And yet, thanks to recurrent displacement by the Israeli military, she is now, in her 80s, forced to travel the world. Following a stay in Cairo, she's currently in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on a visa due to expire shortly. She's casting about for where to go next. Fatima was born in a village called Isdud, close to what is now the southern Israeli city of Ashdod. She was about 5 years old when the Israeli military closed in on the village in October 1948. My mother-in-law fled with her parents and thousands of neighbors to Gaza. Shortly after occupying Isdud, the Israeli military expelled its remaining residents and demolished the village. After the war, my future mother-in-law became one of more than 700,000 Palestinian refugees prevented from returning home as part of the nascent state's goal to maintain a Jewish majority in as much of historic Palestine as possible. The Israeli government is now advancing plans to forcibly displace more Palestinians, mostly in Gaza but also in the West Bank. In early July, Defense Minister Israel Katz said he ordered the military to prepare a 'humanitarian city' on the ruins of Gaza's southern city of Rafah, which the Israeli military has almost entirely destroyed. Everyone in Gaza would eventually be concentrated there, he explained. They would not be allowed to return to their homes in other parts of the strip. Mr. Katz said international humanitarian organizations — as yet unnamed — would be charged with managing the area. The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has also said he's working with the United States to find third countries to resettle displaced Gaza residents. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
State of play in Trump's tariffs, threats and delays
Dozens of economies including India, Canada and Mexico face threats of higher tariffs Friday if they fail to strike deals with Washington. Here is a summary of duties President Donald Trump has introduced in his second term as he pressures allies and competitors alike to reshape US trade relationships. - Global tariffs - US "reciprocal" tariffs -- imposed under legally contentious emergency powers -- are due to jump from 10 percent to various steeper levels for a list of dozens of economies come August 1, including South Korea, India and Taiwan. The hikes were to take effect July 9 but Trump postponed them days before imposition, marking a second delay since their shock unveiling in April. A 10 percent "baseline" levy on most partners, which Trump imposed in April, remains in place. He has also issued letters dictating tariff rates above 10 percent for individual countries, including Brazil, which has a trade deficit with the United States and was not on the initial list of higher "reciprocal" rates. Several economies -- the European Union, Britain, Vietnam, Japan, Indonesia and the Philippines -- have struck initial tariff deals with Washington, while China managed to temporarily lower tit-for-tat duties. Certain products like pharmaceuticals, semiconductors and lumber are excluded from Trump's "reciprocal" tariffs, but may face separate action under different authorities. This has been the case for steel, aluminum, and soon copper. Gold and silver, alongside energy commodities, are also exempted. Excluded too are Mexico and Canada, hit with a different set of tariffs, and countries like Russia and North Korea as they already face sanctions. - Canada, Mexico - Canadian and Mexican products were hit by 25 percent US tariffs shortly after Trump returned to office, with a lower rate for Canadian energy. Trump targeted both neighbors over illegal immigration and fentanyl trafficking, also invoking emergency powers. But trade negotiations have been bumpy. This month, Trump said Canadian goods will face a higher 35 percent duty from August 1, and Mexican goods will see a 30 percent level. Products entering the United States under the USMCA North American free trade pact, covering large swaths of goods, are expected to remain exempt -- with Canadian energy resources and potash, used as fertilizer, to still face lower rates. - China focus - Trump has also taken special aim at China. The world's two biggest economies engaged in an escalating tariffs war this year before their temporary pullback. The countries imposed triple-digit duties on each other at one point, a level described as a trade embargo. After high level talks, Washington lowered its levies on Chinese goods to 30 percent and Beijing slashed its own to 10 percent. This pause is set to expire August 12, and officials will meet for further talks on Monday and Tuesday in the Swedish capital Stockholm. The US level is higher as it includes a 20 percent tariff over China's alleged role in the global fentanyl trade. Beyond expansive tariffs on Chinese products, Trump ordered the closure of a duty-free exemption for low-value parcels from the country. This adds to the cost of importing items like clothing and small electronics. - Autos, metals - Trump has targeted individual business sectors too, under more conventional national security grounds, imposing a 25 percent levy on steel and aluminum imports which he later doubled to 50 percent. The president has unveiled plans for a 50 percent tariff on copper imports starting August 1 as well and rolled out a 25 percent tariff on imported autos, although those entering under the USMCA can qualify for a lower rate. Trump's auto tariffs impact vehicle parts too, but new rules ensure automakers paying vehicle tariffs will not also be charged for certain other duties. He has ongoing investigations into imports of lumber, semiconductors, pharmaceuticals and critical minerals that could trigger further duties. - Legal challenges - Several legal challenges have been filed against the tariffs Trump invoked citing emergencies. The US Court of International Trade ruled in May that the president had overstepped his authority, but a federal appeals court has allowed the duties to remain while it considers the case. If these tariffs are ultimately ruled illegal, companies could possibly seek reimbursements. bys/des/mlm Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Yahoo
Former Obama Speechwriter Jon Lovett on How Trump Is Funny Like a 'Clown With a Gun'
Donald Trump may not like being a punchline and seemingly never laughs, but he has a funny bone behind his frowns and scowls. Just ask Obama speechwriter and self-described comedian Jon Lovett. 'Trump's very funny. When he says Merry Christmas to all the haters and losers, that's funny. He's funny,' Lovett tells The Hollywood Reporter from the Just For Laughs comedy festival in Montreal. More from The Hollywood Reporter 'In the Land of Arto': Camille Cottin, Zar Amir Ebrahimi Journey Into Armenia and Its Past (Exclusive Clips) Why Stand-up Legend George Wallace Can't Get Off the Stage After 49 Years in Comedy: "I'm Living My Dream" Oasis Play Wembley: 5 Takeaways From Liam and Noel Gallagher's Nostalgia-Packed Return to Stage Sure, the U.S. president has laid ruin to U.S. politics since returning to the White House. 'Trump is a vandal. He's doing vandalism to our country,' Lovett insists. But he can't ignore Trump's surprise comedy chops behind that lower lip pout or when he shows open anger. 'When he steamrolls in an interview, or when he's on stage, he's doing his version of crowd work with his MAGA base. So I do think he's funny. That's part of his skill,' Lovett argues. He took to the stage in Montreal for a live presentation of his Lovett or Leave It podcast, with Gianmarco Soresi, Roy Wood Jr., Mary Beth Barone and Zach Zucker as guests. And while Trump's no stand-up, Lovett insists 'he's got a cruel sense of humor, and it works at times. He has a great sense for television. He knows what's going to play well. And he knows when what's happening is silly or ridiculous, and he knows when he needs to be on the outside of it, with the audience watching it.' 'We can pretend otherwise, but we do so at our peril,' he added. For Lovett, as a host of the Pod Save America and Lovett or Leave It podcasts from Crooked Media, doing audio content allows him to fulfill all his creative interests and goals. 'It's writing. It's performing. It's politics. It's comedy. And I get to do all of them,' he explains. All of which is an unconventional route to stand-up for Lovett. 'I didn't do open mikes out of college, my path to telling jokes on stage wasn't the traditional one. I always feel a little bit of an outsider in the comedy world,' he admits. And Lovett points to the challenge of making comedy amid Trump's world of distractions and political division. 'It'll be hard to describe to future generations how stupid and dangerous politics in American have become,' he explains. One solution is to use comedy as opposition to Trump, including the Democratic Party, and become happy warriors, because the serious part of politics is exhausting, embarrassing and causes unending anxiety. 'We have to stay invested, and that's going to be a mix of seriousness when it's called for, but also a willingness to make fun of thse people for being fools like Trump is a clown with a gun. The gun doesn't change the fact that he's a clown, and the fact that he's a clown doesn't change the fact he's holding a gun,' Lovett insists. The Just For Laughs comedy festival continues through Sunday. Best of The Hollywood Reporter From 'Party in the U.S.A.' to 'Born in the U.S.A.': 20 of America's Most Patriotic (and Un-Patriotic) Musical Offerings Most Anticipated Concert Tours of 2025: Beyoncé, Billie Eilish, Kendrick Lamar & SZA, Sabrina Carpenter and More Hollywood's Most Notable Deaths of 2025 Solve the daily Crossword