When I was given the chance to write in this edition of Laval Families Magazine, with content that is distributed across our city and read by so many citizens and families, I was driven to put forward my role as City Councillor Responsible for Immigration

There is so much diversity in the city, second in line when it comes to having the most cultural minorities in Quebec, and I find it important to highlight how that plays into the development of the city.

How does Laval embrace immigration?
In recent years, great ranges of policies were adopted to facilitate the integration of our communities. It was important for us that Laval provide services to make all members of the city strive economically, but also on all levels of public life. Immigration population grew vastly in the past few years. One out of three Laval citizens is an immigrant and between 2001 and 2016, the immigrant population more than doubled.This means that immigrants are choosing Laval as their home. It makes it that much more important to include this population in the flourishing of our city.

Here are some examples of such policies. We had set in place a system of help and integration for the more than 1300 Syrian refugees that arrived in 2015 and 2016. Two committees established by the city provided services to ensure transition into their new livees. Funds and resources were deployed to assist Moisson Laval and the Laval Volunteer Center to support the coordination of donations and assistance.

In 2017, the city of Laval and the Ministère de l’Immigration, de la Diversité et de l’Inclusion signed an agreement of one million dollars to fund projects for the inclusion and participation of immigrants in their communities. The idea was to encourage those populations, who are new to our political and social systems, to take part in the development of the city as a whole.As of today, 17 projects were put in place thanks to this agreement. It included cultural activities like music and dancing, but also guided visits to services institution and the creation of women’s sharing groups for immigrant women.

In 2020, we had announced an Immigration Forum, which I was so pleased to be able to advocate and put forward while carrying my duties. As we all know, this year has seen numerous unexpected changes in our plans and projects. We are still committed to seeing this forum take place in Laval, but the format is being reviewed to adapt to the current situation.

Striving to be better
Of course, like any organization, we can only strive to do and be better. This year particularly has brought forward the necessity to ask ourselves what can be done to ensure our policies and actions truly reflect the diversity of our society.

This past summer, we announced our new consultation process called Nouveau regard sur le Service de police de Laval (New Perspective on the Laval Police Department) which aims to offer a service of proximity to all Laval citizens, regardless of ethnic background. To keep our practices evolving, we have targeted the following key elements. Globally, the thought process included three main ideas, growing our knowledge and understanding of the realities of ethnic minorities; encouraging youth coming from an immigrant background to work in public security to make the field more representative; putting in place strong policies in consultation with our Youth Consultative Committee and our Intercultural Consultative Committee as well as with citizens and non-profit organizations.

During the Fall of 2020, numerous forms of public consultations took place, and are still taking place to collect citizens’ opinions, testimonies and visions on our services and how they affect immigrant populations. This will serve for upcoming changes in our practices. Visit www.repensonslaval.ca/dialogue-police to have more information on how to participate in this important discussion.

My role as the City Councillor Responsible for Immigration gave me the opportunity to bring forward the contribution of immigrant populations. It is also helping me learn how to walk towards a society increasingly inclusive, diverse, and equal. This is not possible without the inclusion of all voices in the process of policy-making. It is together that we will build a society that truly represents all of our collective aspirations enhanced by all backgrounds.