Over the past year, Squamish has become home to three families from war-torn Syria. We know that they were given bus passes from the District of Squamish, and that they have young children, but that is all we know.
We don’t know anything directly from the newcomers about how they are doing so far in Squamish (winter weather isn’t always this crazy, honest). While the local groups who brought them to Squamish were visible, vocal and publicity-hungry while they were fundraising and organizing work parties to prepare for these families, they have told us they won’t even pass on our requests to talk to the members of the actual families.
We were told perhaps in late spring the group leaders would “reconsider” our request to speak with the newcomers.
There is too much pressure on the former refugees to say yes to our request, is the rationale.
The group leaders are respecting the new residents’ privacy, they say.
To be clear, we knew the families had arrived some months ago, but waited to reach out, respecting their need for time to settle in.
Further, at The Chief we totally respect a person’s right to turn down a media request – it happens all the time. But what we don’t support is our requests not even being passed on to new, adult members of our community.
Though the group leaders are undoubtedly well meaning, this rings of paternalism to us. From our point of view newly arrived refugees are as able and capable as the next citizen and should be treated as such, respecting their right to make decisions for themselves.
Many of the 39,671 Syrian refugees who have arrived in other communities across Canada since November 2015, according to federal government figures, have agreed to share their experiences with various news outlets.
Some share what they have been through, while others don’t. Some share their thoughts on their new communities and express what they need from their new neighbours and the broader community. We assume this has been helpful for those newly arrived, and also for those who read their tales and can then understand, reach out or improve thanks to the newcomers’ stories.
So, to those Syrian families that have arrived in Squamish, we welcome you and if you so desire, give us a call, or don’t. Either way, it should be up to you.
