The concern is that these two groups of people [those with uncertain or no immigration status] are holding themselves back from having access to city services,” said Zool Suleman, an immigration lawyer who worked on drafting the policy as a member of the mayor’s working group on immigration.
“For example, if there’s an emergency and say the fire truck comes … the question becomes: Are they afraid the person who is coming to help them will take their data and report them to Canada Border Services [Agency]?
“If they’re victims of crime are they afraid to call police because they think the police will report them?”
The issue of agencies reporting immigrants who are undocumented or without status received widespread attention after Lucia Jimenez, a Mexican, died in CBSA custody in December 2014 after coming into contact with Transit Police.
Source: CBC News British Columbia
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