Vigil for an Unnamed Migrant

On February 13th, 2022, a vigil was held outside the Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) to commemorate the life of an unnamed migrant who died in custody at a migrant detention facility in Laval, Quebec.

First responders were called after the detainee was discovered in medical distress. Employees at the CBSA facility provided CPR until paramedics arrived, however, the detainee died in hospital a few hours later. 

Bill Van Driel, spokesperson for migrant rights group Solidarity Across Borders, spoke to CUTV about the experiences of migrants at this facility.

Van Driel said that they don't know the circumstances of the migrants persons death as the CBSA refuses to disclose this information, but that they died alone in a cell and they should have had more dignity than that.

Solidarity Across Borders held a march from Montreal to Ottawa in July 2021 raising awareness for the experiences of migrants and demanding for status for all, as this would remove migrants from precarious situations. Some of the precarious situations migrants face are exploitation in the workplace and risk of being deported or ending up in a CBSA facility.

Detainees have been sounding the alarm for years regarding the poor conditions within this facility. The CBSA has refused to disclose any information regarding this individual's death.

Van Driel said migrants have been sounding the alarms from inside the detention centre, as there have been two hunger strikes in the last year. A hunger strike was hosted at this detention centre in March of 2021 to protest the living and health conditions, as at least five detainees contracted COVID-19. 

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