lists: This is leading to work permits being issued with the names in the wrong order last as first and first as last, according to Toronto Star. The invalid permits are leaving refugees unable to provide for their families. Unlike the Canadian passport, which lists a person's last name followed by their first name on two separate lines, the Eritrean passport lists the first name followed by the last on one line. Read more Opinion Do Black migrants lives matter at the U.S.-Canada border Article Continued Below Canada's refugee board abruptly changes its scheduling system amid surging backlog Rule keeping refugees' dependants away draws fire I couldn't work, I couldn't help myself and my family, said Abduselam Aman, a refugee from Eritrea who applied for a work permit for himself and his wife in March 2017, two months after they arrived in Canada. react-empty 180 My wife still doesn't have her permit. Aman and his wife, Munira Abdulkeni, received their work permits with their names switched around two months after applying a mistake most employers will not look past. We are lost, we don't know who to contact anymore or what to say. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

work: This is leading to work permits being issued with the names in the wrong order last as first and first as last, according to Metro News. The invalid permits are leaving refugees unable to provide for their families. Unlike the Canadian passport, which lists a person's last name followed by their first name on two separate lines, the Eritrean passport lists the first name followed by the last on one line. I couldn't work, I couldn't help myself and my family, said Abduselam Aman, a refugee from Eritrea who applied for a work permit for himself and his wife in March 2017, two months after they arrived in Canada. We are lost, we don't know who to contact anymore or what to say. My wife still doesn't have her permit. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

grassroots coding: Grassroots coding, gaming groups tackle tech's diversity crisis Women In seeks to boost gender diversity in gaming Passmore is a researcher at the University of Saskatchewan Human-Computer Interaction Lab in Saskatoon, according to CBC. Driven to find out more about the impact of the lack of diversity in games, he started researching the impact to health and psychology. That one game where there is a Hispanic protagonist those sorts of tokenizing examples just don't match up with the actual data we're seeing, he told CBC Radio's Afternoon Edition on Friday. We started out talking to friends, people of colour, we created a survey that asked the types of questions that are on people's minds but get buried or not approached, said Passmore. Passmore said the results showed that the lack of diversity affected people in different ways depending on their own experiences. Effect is similar to 'everyday' racism researcher The 92-question survey was tested and then released to almost 300 Americans. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

jerusalem: I think there are very good reasons to question the theory that unilateral recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel would contribute to the consolidation of peace in the Middle East, Steinmeier was quoted as telling the Jordanian daily Al-Ghad in an interview published Sunday, according to Metro News. One of the pillars of Germany's position on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is the need to preserve the status of holy sites and to negotiate the final status of Jerusalem within the framework of the two-state solution, Steinmeier, a former foreign minister, told Al-Ghad. Abdullah II spoke at the start of a meeting with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who also expressed concern about President Donald Trump's recognition last month of contested Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Jordan's monarch serves as custodian of a major Muslim shrine in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem and the kingdom's Hashemite dynasty derives much of its political legitimacy from its special role in Jerusalem. I think our views on Palestine and Jerusalem are well known to you, the king told the German president Sunday. Jordan is also home to a large Palestinian population. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

malaysian delegation: The team visited a hospital set up by Malaysia and distributed relief goods in another camp, according to CTV. It is very important that we're here, because what the Rohingya people are going through is despicable and it's very, very tragic. Yeoh, a goodwill ambassador for the U.N. Development Program, visited sprawling refugee camps in Bangladesh's Cox's Bazar on Saturday as part of a Malaysian delegation led by the Southeast Asian nation's military chief. It should not be allowed, she said. Nearly 700,000 Rohingya have fled Myanmar since August in what the U.N. has described as ethnic cleansing. Every single one of them deserves to have the human rights that should be given to them. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

van city: After we asked readers to submit alternative names, more than 300 poured in, according to Vancouver Courier. Some were serious, some frivolous, some thoughtful, some racist, some anatomically challenging. Good idea or bad, it isn't going to happen.article continues below Trending Stories Photo of RV community under Skytrain has Van City abuzz Former ICBC executive Nick Geer, killed in Calif. crash, remembered as family man Richmond man who died trying to stop fight remembered for his good humour Police deal with 10-car pile-up on Cypress Bowl Roadrelated Why change a place's name Because sometimes they're offensive Vancouver's school naming saga continues Monday evening It's an intriguing proposal to debate, though, as proven by the response to last Sunday's column. All were in response to an idea first advanced a decade ago by Victoria's Ben Pires, who argues the province's current name is neither historically accurate direct British rule didn't last that long nor inclusive. The most popular choices for a new name Dozens of readers favoured some variant of either Pacifica or Cascadia, though the latter is a little confusing in that the term already refers to the region from northern California to Alaska.J.C. Scott proposed Cascadian as a specifically Canadian option. Thinking about that perspective was the real point of the exercise. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

canada: Snow was knee-deep, according to Toronto Star. It was -30 C. For the five newcomers, Sandhu said in an interview this week, the country was white in more ways than one. He was 27, newly arrived in Canada from India, landing with his wife and three children in his new home of Williams Lake, B.C. It was just before Christmas 1970. It was like another planet. It all sounds to modern ears as outmoded as it is appalling. Which is not so very different, he laughs, than how 1970s Canada regarded Sikhs, widely reviled as were most people of brown skin as Pakis, their turbans and beards a magnet for attacks and venomous hisses to go home. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

cash prizes: Despite the slippery road conditions, more than 125 people attended the sold-out show, which included comedians telling their best jokes to musicians hitting the right notes, according to CBC. It's nice for some of us older folks to get out here and try to entertain some people, first-time performer Silvaggio said afterwards. Silvaggio was one of the nine acts who performed in the first-ever seniors' talent show at the Mill Woods Senior and Multicultural Centre Friday night. Original comedy skit 'The Model Tease' strutted their stuff to Meghan Trainor's Me Too as they told jokes to the packed house. Besides the thrill of being onstage, performers had a chance to win 150 cash prizes awarded by the audience and a panel of judges. Kaylen Small/CBC The Mill Woods Seniors Association came up with the talent show as a way to keep its members active. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

experts estimate: But the plan's potential impact on legal immigration has sparked fierce Democratic opposition and appears it may sink chances for a bipartisan deal in Congress, according to Metro News. The proposal outlined Thursday by the White House would end much family-based immigration and the visa lottery program, moves that some experts estimate could cut legal immigration into the United States nearly in half. Much of the public debate to this point has been about young immigrants brought to this country as children illegally. The plan would also protect some 700,000 young immigrants from deportation and provide a pathway to citizenship, a top Democratic goal. function set Cookie related path / ; Related Haitians march against Trump's immigration policies Trump turns again on immigration; allies bash 'Amnesty Don'Moving past the wall Trump plan takes on legal immigration (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

rohingya insurgents: Suu Kyi and Duterte met in New Delhi this week at a summit of Southeast Asian leaders on the 25th anniversary of ASEAN-India ties, according to CTV. Nearly 700,000 Rohingya have fled Myanmar's Rakhine state for Bangladesh since the beginning of August, after Myanmar security forces began clearance operations in their villages in the wake of attacks by Rohingya insurgents on police posts. President Rodrigo Duterte said he told Suu Kyi to ignore human right activists, describing them as a noisy bunch. The UN has described the campaign as ethnic cleansing. Still, Suu Kyi has faced widespread international criticism for not speaking out in defence of the Rohingya, especially given her history as a Nobel Peace Prize winner. Though Suu Kyi has been the de facto head of Myanmar's civilian government since her party swept elections in 2015, she is constitutionally limited in her control of the country and the military is in charge of the operations in Rakhine. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

jewish community: U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson attended a solemn ceremony at a memorial in Poland to the Jews who died fighting the German forces in the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising of 1943, according to CTV. Tillerson trailed two uniformed Polish military officers and readjusted a wreath underneath the monument, a dark, hulking structure located in what was once the Warsaw Ghetto. On the date now commemorated as International Holocaust Remembrance Day, political leaders and Jewish officials warned that the Nazi genocide must always be a reminder of the evil of which humans are capable. The head of Warsaw's Jewish community read a prayer, and Tillerson made brief remarks about the importance of not forgetting the horrors of the Holocaust. The Western alliance which emerged from World War II has committed itself to ensuring the security of all that this would never happen again, he said. On this occasion, it reminds us that we can never, we can never, be indifferent to the face of evil, Tillerson said. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

joe crowley: Ragbir was in federal custody Saturday, several weeks after he was handcuffed and arrested during a routine check-in with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, according to Metro News. Velazquez, a New York Democrat, joined Ragbir's wife, Amy Gottlieb, and other elected officials Saturday at a rally in front of the Manhattan office building that houses ICE. That is where Ragbir was taken into custody on Jan. 11. Nydia Velazquez has invited the wife of detained immigrant rights activist Ravi Ragbir to President Donald Trump's State of the Union address. Three other Democratic members of Congress from New York showed up at the rally in support of Ragbir Rep. Joe Crowley and Rep. Carolyn Maloney, Rep. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

nikita chauhan: This is the real Toronto the real Canada a place that prides itself for being multicultural, but lurks with subtle acts of racism with every stare, job application and your everyday visit to the grocery store, according to Toronto Star. We all are under an unquestioned assumption that these insidious acts don't happen here. Because of the internalized racism within this nation and our inability to look beyond stereotypes, they are treated as third-class citizens. We bought the lie of multiculturalism and believed it without further thought. Article Continued Below Nikita Chauhan, Brampton Read more about Brampton Do you want to help shapethe Toronto Star's future Join our team of readers who are passionate about journalism and share your views. It's research like this that, I hope, paints a more realistic picture of what Canada truly is like. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

rohingya: Suu Kyi and Duterte met in New Delhi this week at a summit of Southeast Asian leaders on the 25th anniversary of ASEAN-India ties, according to Toronto Star. Nearly 700,000 Rohingya have fled Burma's Rakhine state for Bangladesh since the beginning of August, after Myanmar security forces began clearance operations in their villages in the wake of attacks by Rohingya insurgents on police posts. Duterte said he told Suu Kyi to ignore human right activists, describing them as a noisy bunch. The U.N. has described the campaign as ethnic cleansing. Article Continued Below Still, Suu Kyi has faced widespread international criticism for not speaking out in defence of the Rohingya, especially given her history as a Nobel Peace Prize winner. Though Suu Kyi has been the de facto head of Burma's civilian government since her party swept elections in 2015, she is constitutionally limited in her control of the country and the military is in charge of the operations in Rakhine. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

travel publications: And I'm not the only one who has fallen for the city of 1.5 million, which celebrates its 300th birthday in 2018, according to The Chronicle Herald. National Geographic Traveler, Frommer's, Fodor's and a host of other travel publications highlight it as a top destination for the year ahead. After just four days, that's exactly how I felt about San Antonio, Texas. What makes San Antonio so special Here are my top five reasons 1. Who doesn't like swapping their parka and winter boots for a T-shirt and sandals The city is a great destination year-round, with 300 days of sunshine annually, warm-to-hot summers, mild winters and pleasant spring/fall periods. 2. The weather The city's initial appeal had much to do with the sunshine and 27 C temperature warming my soul after I arrived into San Antonio International Airport. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

tyne valley: Here are some suggestions. 1, according to CBC. Get into books There are free family literacy events at five public libraries Saturday, including Summerside, Tyne Valley, O'Leary, Stratford and Montague. While we're still in the throes of winter, there are plenty of indoor and outdoor activities to choose from on P.E.I., many of them 100 per cent free. In Montague at 1 p.m. they're holding a read in to see how many people they can get reading in the library at once. The province's major event will be in Summerside from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Rotary Library. O'Leary will have family board games to play from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and in Stratford at 11 30 kids can hear stories by Barbara Reid, make their own play dough and create some art with it. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

university spokesman: Spencer's campus tour organizer, Cameron Padgett, had asked to rent space for a Spencer speech on the May 4 anniversary of Ohio National Guard shootings that killed four students in 1970, according to Metro News. The university said it couldn't accept the request because early May was too busy with the end of the academic year. Attorney Kyle Bristow notified the school Friday it has until Feb. 9 to agree to rent space at its Student Multicultural Center at an acceptable date and time or face a federal lawsuit. Messages were left Friday for a university spokesman. Several schools have rejected Spencer's speech requests. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

warsaw: Tillerson trailed two uniformed Polish military officers and readjusted a wreath underneath the monument, a hulking structure located in what was once the Warsaw Ghetto, according to CTV. The head of Warsaw's Jewish community read a prayer and Tillerson made brief remarks about the importance of not forgetting the horrors of the Holocaust. In Warsaw, Poland, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson paid his respects in a solemn ceremony at a memorial to the Jews who died revolting against German forces in the doomed Warsaw Ghetto Uprising of 1943. On this occasion it reminds us that we can never, we can never, be indifferent to the face of evil, Tillerson said. As we mark this day in solemn remembrance, let us repeat the words of our own commitment Never again. The western alliance which emerged from World War II has committed itself to the assuring the security of all, that this would never happen again, he said. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

washington humming: First he shut down the U.S. government in the name of Dreamers -- young immigrants who've never lived elsewhere but are threatened by Trump with deportation, according to Rabble. Mere hours later, having done some electoral math, Schumer retreated and agreed to keep Washington humming. Actually, it's always time for passion in politics, but only when real.I'm thinking of the ignoble behaviour of U.S. Democratic senate leader Chuck Schumer recently. For the record, I hate how we follow U.S. politics here, as if we were there. It was a defeat and humiliation for anti-Trump forces. But that battle's over, so let's get on with dissecting their reality. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

canadian press: Why As the local joke goes because Oshawans are just that desperate for an escape from their reality, according to CTV. In extensive polling by EKOS Research and The Canadian Press, Oshawa was the city in Canada home to the highest number of respondents with a pessimistic view of the world -- a view that's in lockstep with the attitudes believed to underpin 21st-century populist forces in play globally. Yet, three shops selling comics, toys and games manage to hang on in this city 60 kilometres from Toronto. All three federal political parties have spoken out about the potential for the economic and cultural discontent fuelling populist politics to come to roost in Canada. EKOS and The Canadian Press sought, through a major poll of 12,604 Canadians, to figure out where they were and what they were saying. The Liberals use it as a reason to justify their progressive trade agenda; some Conservatives echoed it during their recent leadership race and the New Democrats are hoping to capitalize on leftist populism akin to what Bernie Sanders did in the U.S. But a key theme also running through the anti-establishment sentiment around the world is the sense that no one is listening to the voices of those driving it. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

b offer: U.S. Democrats withdraw 25B offer to fund Trump's border wall What's up with Trump's border wall Prototypes are ready to test, but it's a bit more complicated in Texas Senior White House officials cast the plan as a centrist compromise that could win support from both parties and enough votes to pass the Senate, according to CBC. But it comes with a long list of concessions that many Democrats, and also conservative Republicans, especially in the House, may find impossible to swallow. The plan, announced Thursday, was applauded by some in Congress, but blasted by conservative activists as amnesty and slammed by a slew of Democrats, who accused President Donald Trump of holding Dreamers hostage to his hard-line immigration agenda. The plan would provide a pathway to citizenship for the roughly 690,000 younger immigrants protected from deportation by the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program as well as hundreds of thousands of others who independent estimates say qualify for the program, but never applied. The plan would not allow parents of those immigrants to seek lawful status, the officials said. Plan excludes parents Trump announced last year that he was doing away with the program, but gave Congress until March to come up with a legislative fix. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

brooke trippel: One of the winners was Vendasta Technologies, which took home the Employer Partner of the Year award, according to CTV. Culture and diversity leads to creativity, and that's really important in our software department, said Brooke Trippel, people operations specialist with Vendasta. The society hosted a gala Thursday night at the Sheraton Cavalier, where the awards were presented. Technology is everywhere, and we've had so many amazingly talented people in the tech industry from around the world join us in Saskatoon. The full list of winners of the 2018 Saskatoon Open Door Society Workforce Diversity Awards is as follows --Leadership in Immigrant Employment, Small Local Employer Jerry's Food Emporium --Leadership in Immigrant Employment, Corporate Employer Saskatoon Inn & Conference Centre --Excellence in Immigrant Integration, Small Local Employer 7Shifts Employee Scheduling Software Inc. --Excellence in Immigrant Integration, Corporate Employer The Home Depot and Maple Leaf Foods Inc. --Saskatoon Open Door Society Employer Partner of the Year Vendasta Technologies Inc. --Saskatoon Open Door Society Long-Term Employer Partner Saskatoon Co-operative Association Ltd. --Individual Achievement in Immigrant Employment and Integration Jim Bence The gala also included several musical performances from acts with diverse backgrounds. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

canadian citizenship: In an interview with The Canadian Press, Abdi said he has paid for his mistakes and wants the federal government to halt any attempt to deport him, according to The Chronicle Herald. The 24-year-old man said he has no remaining ties to the war-torn country, and wants to get on with his life after serving his prison term and be a role model for his daughter. Abdi, who never got Canadian citizenship while growing up in foster care in Nova Scotia, was held by the Canada Border Services Agency after spending five years in prison for multiple offences, including aggravated assault. They're trying to send me back after my culture has been wiped from me, after my language has been wiped from me, after everything I knew there all my family and everything was taken from me, they want to send me back, said Abdi from Toronto. The case has become a rallying point for advocates who say it was wrong for the province to fail to apply for citizenship on his behalf. It's the greatest injustice I've ever seen done to anybody. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

executive director: A loyal media ally, Breitbart News, attacked him as Amnesty Don, according to Metro News. And outside groups that cheered the hardline rhetoric that dominated Trump's campaign warned of fierce backlash against the president's party in November's midterm elections. Trump-aligned candidates from Nevada and Virginia rejected the notion outright. There's a real potential for disaster, said Mark Krikorian, executive director of the far-right Center for Immigration Studies. But I think it's important that his supporters are making clear to him that they're keeping an eye on him. The president hasn't sold out his voters yet. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

halifax cafe: John's, N.L., writer screamed when she got the news she is one of 15 authors vying to be one of five in the CBC Radio book debate, according to The Chronicle Herald. I feel honoured to be in this august company. The St. To be longlisted so quickly is unbelievable, says Bala, whose novel was published in early January in both Canada and the United States. In the fall of 2010 the MV Sun Sea, a cargo ship carrying almost 500 Tamils from war-torn Sri Lanka, arrived in British Columbia. Bala expresses another emotion as she talks rapidly and excitedly at a Halifax cafe about her compelling, fast-paced tale based on a true story. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

haitian flags: The gathering was meant as a rebuke of a vulgar comment Trump made about Haiti and African nations during negotiations with congressional leaders over immigration policy, organizers said, according to Metro News. We can stand in the cold because we are fighting for what is right, said Geralde Gabeau, a rally organizer. Roughly 200 people came out to City Hall Plaza waving Haitian flags and holding signs critical of the president before marching silently next door to the John F. Kennedy Federal Building that houses many federal agencies. We are not going to repeat the words of the president because we are a people of character, grace and dignity. The special status allows foreign nationals to live and work in the United State temporarily when natural disasters or civil wars prevent them from returning to their home countries safely. Organizers also called on the Trump administration to re-examine its decision to terminate temporary protected status for tens of thousands of Haitians. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.