Welcoming Refugees Is A Win-Win
The Saturday Huddle is a weekly column that features opinion, analysis, and reflections on Huddle stories, podcasts, and business news in the region. Derek Montague is a Huddle reporter based in Halifax.
There was a time when the mention of refugees, and Canada’s acceptance of them, would rile people up and bring out the worst. Now, as I write this column, I feel I’m preaching to the choir. I rarely come across anyone who doesn’t welcome people from war-torn regions of the world.
But I remember six years ago when the topic of Syrian refugees — and Canada’s role in providing a safe haven — was controversial. But at the end of the day we, as a country, and Atlantic Canada as a region, were lucky cooler heads prevailed and we welcomed tens of thousands of newcomers.
The newcomers who arrived have already made Canada a larger, more diverse country. And, as a spinoff, the economic impact has been positive.
We need to look no further than Tareq Hadhad and Peace By Chocolate. It’s become a bit cliche to use Hadhad as an example of what refugees can bring to a community; there is now a book and a movie about the Hadhad family’s experience. But I can’t overstate how a whole community can benefit when we keep our arms, and minds, open.
Last week, it was finally my turn to interview the famous chocolate maker. My colleagues at Huddle (and probably every other Halifax journalist) have interviewed him extensively since the Hadhads arrived in 2016.
Despite being familiar with the story, I was astounded to hear Hadhad’s positivity and optimism first-hand. The aspect of his story that enlightened me the most, however, was how much credit he gave to Antigonish for his own company’s success. He said, “it takes a village to raise a refugee family.”
It made me wonder how different things could have been if the Hadhad family landed somewhere less welcoming. There would likely be no Peace By Chocolate, no great story, no book, and no movie. Considering how fast Peace by Chocolate is growing, it would also be a major economic loss if that chocolate factory didn’t exist.
Unfortunately, not everywhere is as welcoming as Antigonish. I was covering Canada’s role in the Syrian refugee crisis on the ground floor back in 2016, back when millions were trying to do what they could to help these people who were fleeing death and destruction.
I was working for a small daily newspaper in Corner Brook, Newfoundland, when a grassroots movement formed to sponsor one Syrian family to come live in the city. It was inspiring to see dozens of people come together at an initial meeting and to see their vision become reality just months later.
It brought joy to the small city of Corner Brook to see how happy the kids were to have a new home. I wrote a story about a local grocery store that gave the family a bunch of gift cards to welcome them. The husband and father of the household asked, during the tour, if they could use a butcher at the shop. He wanted to find a job as soon as he could.
I’m sure we have all heard the tired cliché that refugees come to a new country to take from the system and not give, and stories like this help cast such stereotypes aside.
But while Corner Brook was warm and welcoming, the same could not be said for the despicable way some people from my old stomping ground (central Labrador) reacted to the refugee crisis.
Goose Bay has a large air force base and the federal government was considering using it as a processing facility for the thousands of newcomers that would be coming to Canada in short order from Syria. In response to this possibility, the vitriol and ignorance displayed online was disgusting, ignorant, and racist. It was a reminder there is still work to do to get rid of old stereotypes.
Luckily, recent statistics show I am indeed preaching to the choir. A 2021 study on Canadian’s attitudes towards refugees revealed that 75 percent of Atlantic Canadians believe that the country should be bringing in more people from areas affected by major conflict. With the war still happening in Ukraine, there’s a good chance our attitudes will be put to the test.
The study notes that our region has among the most positive views towards immigration and refugees among all Canadian regions.
Other stats also highlight the positives that come from welcoming those most in need. While researching the new Tent initiative for refugee-owned businesses in Canada, I discovered that nearly 15 percent of new Canadians become entrepreneurs. That seems like an insanely high number of self-motivated people bringing much-needed new investment ideas to our region.
RELATED: New Program Gives Refugee-Owned Businesses Access, Resources
Such a stat also hammers another nail in the coffin of the stereotype that refugees are here to take, not give back.
Once again, I have to point to Peace By Chocolate as a sweet example of the new ideas, and prosperity, that refugees can bring. It’s a win-win for all involved.
And I will argue we should accept newcomers with open arms, regardless of any economic arguments. Even if we were hit by a recession (a possibility in 2023), we could still afford to help those in dire need of shelter and safety. But the timing for welcoming people from abroad has never been better, as we need new, young, people to come here.
A recent APEC study showed that for every 10 people retiring from the workforce, only seven young workers were entering it to replace them. That means we are losing more workers than we are gaining. And if we are all on board in Nova Scotia with doubling our current population, we won’t achieve that without immigration.
If I’m not preaching to the choir right now, I ask you to look beyond the tired stereotypes you’ve heard; instead look at the stats, and the many success stories (like Peace By Chocolate). I think you’ll find we all benefit from keeping our arms open wide.