Many Canadians now know what it means to sponsor refugees, thanks to Canada’s Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program (PSRP). The opportunity for civil participation in refugee resettlement is a core part of Canada’s overall refugee policy.
Canadians, mostly in small groups, supported the PSRP overwhelmingly in 2015. Private sponsorship involves Canadian residents financially and emotionally supporting refugees, for a year or more, that they sponsor to be resettled permanently in Canada.
Yet, a new study by Citizens for Public Justice (CPJ) reveals that there are drawbacks to private sponsorship that require urgent policy attention.