“Sign this petition for Maria, Angel, Ulises, because they are risking their lives in Mexico. They are going to lose their teacher, their friends, their cat Mancha and their dog Luna… their HOUSE, their car. In short, EVERYTHING.”
Students at a Hochelaga-Maisonneuve elementary school have collected more than 100 signatures to oppose the expulsion of their three friends, scheduled for September 20.
“They should have the right to stay in Canada,” they say.
They are not the only ones who want to help the Zamudio Quintana family, who have been living here for six years.
It is this long delay between the arrival of this family in Quebec and the decision of the authorities to send them back to their country that makes their situation heartbreaking. These six years allowed the family to settle, to integrate, to learn French. The children, who have in fact spent a greater part of their lives in Quebec than in Mexico, will be uprooted a second time.
Parents of children from the school, volunteers and teachers therefore mobilized to organize a fundraiser with the aim of hiring a lawyer capable of representing them.
“We raised $5,500 in three days,” says Marie-Ève Rancourt, a lawyer and mother of a boy enrolled in the same class as Maria.
Four teachers also took the initiative to write to the federal Ministry of Immigration to plead the cause of the children.
“Uprooting Angel, her sister, her brother and her parents from Canada, Quebec, Montreal, would be absolutely insensitive of you,” one of them stressed in a letter sent to The Press.
This family has been living in Quebec for over six years. They have integrated here, they have created a network of friends and people they trust. Their life is here in Canada now.
Excerpt from a letter written by a teacher of a child Zamudio Quintana
Another teacher wrote: “I find it completely inhumane to move children who have spent more than half their lives here, and who are progressing, flourishing and integrating into our society.”
“They have worked hard to make friends, learn a new language and achieve good academic results, in order to build a future as citizens of this country and contribute to Canadian society. Their deportation would be tragic and would destroy the efforts of parents, teachers and the community,” she added.
Asylum seekers
Angel, 8, Maria, 9, and Ulises, 12, and their parents, Jose Zamudio and Norma Quintana, requested asylum upon arriving in Quebec on November 19, 2018.
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
Jose Zamudio
“We were afraid for our safety,” said Mr. Zamudio, who was met at Saint-Clément Park with his wife and their eldest son, Ulises.
The application, reviewed in March 2021 by the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB), was however rejected. The IRB ruled that the family was not in danger by returning to Mexico.
Mr. Zamudio and Mr.me Quintana could have appealed the decision, but they could not afford to hire a lawyer, they say.
Instead, they submitted a Pre-Removal Risk Assessment (PRRA) form, a document that allows the federal government to ensure that people returned to their country will not be persecuted, that their lives will not be threatened and that they will not suffer “cruel or unusual treatment.”
The response to this request was made in January 2024, three years later, according to the documents consulted by Mme Rancourt.
But it wasn’t until August 14 that the couple was summoned by the Canada Border Services Agency and told they had one month to leave Canada.
Jose Zamudio had been working as a driver for Dexterra Group since February 2022.
His wife Norma was employed by the same company, where she was a supervisor.
Dexterra’s Director of Operations wrote two letters expressing his appreciation for his two employees.
“I would like to express my admiration for Norma’s work,” wrote Roberto Cuesta. “Her professionalism and dedication in supervising and coordinating Dexterra’s staff has been greatly appreciated. Norma has always demonstrated strong leadership and has effectively managed the supervision and logistics of our team.”
“We look forward to receiving positive updates on her migration process so that she can immediately resume her activities within the Dexterra group,” he concluded.
Roberto Cuesta also praised Mr. Zamudio’s qualities: “His professionalism and dedication in managing the driving and distribution logistics for Dexterra have been invaluable.”
Jose Zamudio, Norma Quintana and their three children still have a chance of staying here thanks to the support of the community.
Immigration lawyer Stewart Istvanffy has appealed the decision to deny PRRA in January. He will also apply on September 17 to stay the removal order. The family could potentially be granted permanent residency on humanitarian and compassionate grounds.
“We believe it. Of course,” says Mr. Zamudio.