Cheers and chants erupted as refugee rights advocates arrived at Roxham Road on June 19 to end a three-day march from Montreal in solidarity with refugees.
Around 100 protesters set out on the 73-kilometre march on June 17 from Parc La Fontaine in Montreal, carrying banners and signs denouncing the recent closure of the irregular border crossing to asylum seekers arriving from the United States. They walked in three stretches of around 25 kilometres per day, staying overnight in churches along the way.
The Supreme Court of Canada ruled on the eve of the journey that the STCA is, in large part, constitutional. The ruling spurred on protesters, who were at once angry and frustrated but still hopeful.
The idea to symbolically walk to Roxham Road was launched following an April 4 protest against the “official” closure of the crossing. Patricia Woods of Bridges Not Borders has been attending weekly Zoom meetings with the organizers. The Hemmingford-based organization, which stands in solidarity with asylum seekers, organized the welcome for marchers at the home of a “friend and supporter” along the Canada-U.S. border.
“I am exhausted, but happy!” exclaimed one protester as she lay on the grass upon arrival. Several protesters noted they would not be alive if they had not crossed into Canada, while others described the complex and dangerous conditions they had left behind. Among them was Lovejoyce Amavi, who published a book detailing his experience of fleeing West Africa before crossing into Quebec in 2017. He recalled that Roxham Road was less structured then, but the RCMP were sympathetic, empathetic, and caring. He spoke of his sadness and concern knowing this was no longer the case for asylum seekers attempting to enter Canada.
“The march came alive with all the refugees who were participating,” said Grace Bubeck, also of Bridges Not Borders. “I was really touched by the energy of it all. It was just so uplifting and inspiring,” she added.
Walking among the protesters was Ketty Nivyabandi, the secretary-general for Amnesty International Canada, who addressed the crowd and later said in a post to Twitter that she had seen the best of Canada during the march: “Parents walking 73 kilometres with children and sometimes babies. People handing us food by the roadside. Exhausted strangers hugging and dancing together. All for refugees and migrants.”
Also marching was France-Isabelle Langlois, the general director for the French division of Amnesty International Canada, as well as Paul O’Brien, the executive director of Amnesty International USA. “I got to march with you for just a few miles today, and the energy, the hope, the love, the confidence, and the belief that this country can live up to its promise and its sense of possibility – it was there in the air, every step of the way!” exclaimed O’Brien.
Co-executive director of the Canadian Council for Refugees, Gauri Sreenivasan, then informed the crowd they were not alone. Protests inspired by the march took place in Winnipeg and at Fort Erie, as well as in front of the Supreme Court in Ottawa and the office of the federal Public Safety minister, Marco Mendicino, in Toronto. “You are truly an inspiration and you have sparked actions across the country in opposition to the STCA,” Sreenivasan said.
Following the press conference, weary protesters continued to dance and sing before boarding buses to Montreal, where they promise to continue their fight for refugee rights.