This Sunday, 41 workers will be handcuffed, dragged to an airport and placed on a plane to Thailand. They were arrested with dozens of others on their way to work or while packing food at Cericola Farms, in southwestern Ontario last week. Many of the workers were held at gun point. CBSA then lied to them and tricked them into waiving their legal rights. This is a targeted attack by the Tory government against migrants. Minister Van Loan can stop these deportations; Minister Kenney can grant them status.

YOU can insist that they do so.

1. Take public action against your MP, Immigration or Enforcement Office. Email nooneisillegal at riseup.net if you can organize in your city.

2. Spread the word about the raids.

3. Call Kenney and Van Loan. And call your local MP to pressure the Ministers.

4. Send a letter to Ministers Van Loan and Kenney (sample below). Ask your MP to do the same. Write to your local media outlet.

Peter Van Loan, Minister
Constituency Office
T  1-877-738-3748; T: 613-996-7752
F  905-898-4600; F  613-992-8351
E  vanlop1 at parl.gc.ca
45 Grist Mill Road, Unit 10, Holland Landing, ON L9N1M7
Room 209-S, Centre Block, Ottawa, ON K1A0A6

Jason Kenney, Minister
P. 613-992-2235; F. 613-992-1920
P. 403-225-3480. F. 403-225-3504
E Minister at cic.gc.ca. AND kennej at parl.gc.ca
325 East Block, House of Commons, Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6
1168 137 Ave SE. Calgary, AB T2J 6T6

Ministers Van Loan and Kenney,

On April 2nd and 3rd, CBSA raided three food processing factories where they held all workers at gun point.  These workers were herded into a cafeteria where citizens and permanent residents were separated from
other workers. These other workers, many of whom possess temporary work permits, were handcuffed and held on a bus for over eight hours. In unprecedented weekend hearings, most of the detained workers were tricked into waiving legal advice or the right to dispute their removal.

These illegal and egregious actions were followed by speedy requests for travel documents, as their original passports are held by unscrupulous, corrupt agents at TNT Recruitment. The Thai consulate has provided these papers and 41 of the arrested are being put on a plane on Sunday April 19th.

Deporting migrant workers is arbitrary and unjust. The recruitment agency and the company which paid these workers $9.00 an hour for 12 hours of back-breaking and brutal work have not been charged.

Minister Van Loan, sign a notice to stop the deportations. Minister Kenney, grant all workers arrested full status. Stop using the economic crisis as an excuse to target migrant workers and their families!

Endorsed by: No One Is Illegal-Toronto, Justicia for Migrant Workers, Migrante Ontario, No One Is Illegal Vancouver, Solidarity Across Borders (Montreal), Immigrant Workers Center (Montreal), No One Is Illegal – Montreal, No One Is Illegal – Ottawa

* Actions:

18 April Guelph Central Square and Farmer’s Market

17 April, 9:00am Montreal. Meet at downtown CBSA Offices, 1010 St. Antoine West for Community Caravan for Migrant Justice. Montreal Solidarity Declaration:
http://nooneisillegal-montreal.blogspot.com/2009/04/montreal-solidarity-statement.html

14 April Calgary 1130, Calgary Chamber of Commerce 100 – 6 Avenue S.W

7 April Edmonton http://www.metronews.ca/edmonton/local/article/210247

5 April Toronto http://rabble.ca/news/2009/04/protests-respond-ontario-immigration-raids

9 April Vancouver: Press conference and delegation

REPORTBACK: Vancouver Condemns Immigration Raids

On April 9th, approximately 30 people gathered in Vancouver for an emergency press conference to condemn the unprecedented raids of non-status workers in Southern Ontario. Members of No One Is Illegal,
Siklab Filipino Overseas Workers, Association of Chinese Canadians for Equality and Solidarity Society, Iranian Federation of Refugees, Justicia for Migrant Workers, CIPO, and allies then took their message straight into CBSA offices, despite multiple security attempts to stop the delegation. CBSA insisted that the delegation return with an ‘appointment’ and threatened to call the police, but the delegation remained and briefly occupied the front offices – chanting and dencouncing the violence and brutality of the recent raids, sending a clear message that we are outraged and angered – that we will not remain silent as hundreds of non-status and migrant workers are being brutalized – that we will stand now before these raids escalate across the country.