Canada faces a surge in refugee claimants, exceeding 137,000 in 2024, yet lacks a coordinated national plan for their resettlement. Grassroots organizations are filling the gaps, providing vital housing and support, but a comprehensive federal strategy is urgently needed to ensure dignified support for asylum seekers and fulfill Canada’s international obligations.

In the summer of 2023, a number of African refugee claimants arrived in Toronto. Amid an overburdened shelter system, government inaction, and funding disputes, these migrants were effectively put out on the street. Several faith communities and organizations, including Pilgrim’s Feast Tabernacle Church and the Crisis in our City Network, took up the call to resist this injustice and transformed their spaces into shelters, providing refuge and essential services for thousands. Learn how faith communities took bold an compassionate steps to bring justice to a vulnerable population.