Refugees and their families live in makeshift shelters at the Christian worship center Miracle Arena For All Nations in Vaughan, just outside of Toronto, Sunday, April 21, 2024.|Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
1 of 14
A 37-year-old woman who fled Kenya because of her sexual orientation sits down for a conversation with the Chicago Sun-Times in a park near the home she shares with nine roommates – all refugee claimants – in Brampton, just northwest of Toronto, Tuesday, April 23, 2024.|Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
2 of 14
People walk by a homeless encampment in downtown Toronto, Tuesday, April 23, 2024.|Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
3 of 14
People’s possessions can be seen in the windows at a hotel — formerly a Knights Inn — being run by Homes First, a Toronto-based nonprofit housing organization, Tuesday, April 23, 2024. The nearly 400 people temporarily living out of the hotel rooms are “refugee claimants” — immigrants who fled persecution in their home country.|Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
4 of 14
Jade, 27, — who fled Uganda and asked that her full name not be published – sits in a makeshift shelter space, used as a community room, at the Christian worship center Miracle Arena For All Nations in Vaughan, just outside of Toronto, Sunday, April 21, 2024.|Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
5 of 14
The Rev. Sammy David ministers to the congregation at the Christian worship center Miracle Arena For All Nations in Vaughan, just outside of Toronto, Sunday, April 21, 2024.|Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
6 of 14
People sleep and congregate in the winter respite shelter at a hotel being run by Homes First, a Toronto-based nonprofit housing organization, Tuesday, April 23, 2024. The nearly 400 people temporarily living out of the hotel, formerly a Knights Inn, are “refugee claimants” — immigrants who fled persecution in their home country.|Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
7 of 14
Anita, 67, — who fled Eswatini and asked that her full name not be published – sits down for a conversation with the Chicago Sun-Times in the room she shares with her roommate Clarissa, 65, in a hotel being run by Homes First, a Toronto-based nonprofit housing organization, Tuesday, April 23, 2024. The nearly 400 people temporarily living out of the hotel, formerly a Knights Inn, are “refugee claimants” — immigrants who fled persecution in their home country.|Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
8 of 14
A resident walks in the hallway at a hotel being run by Homes First, a Toronto-based nonprofit housing organization, Tuesday, April 23, 2024. The nearly 400 people temporarily living out of the hotel, formerly a Knights Inn, are “refugee claimants” — immigrants who fled persecution in their home country.|Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
9 of 14
Raunica Ahluwalia and her husband, Bikram Ahluwalia, work together at the Toronto Reference Library, Monday, April 22, 2024.|Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
10 of 14
A couple sits on a bench overlooking a park and the Toronto skyline, April 20, 2024.|Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
11 of 14
People sit outside Toronto’s intake center at 129 Peter St., where many refugee claimants and asylum seekers go to seek government housing services, Monday, April 22, 2024.|Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
12 of 14
People congregate in Nathan Phillips Square, outside Toronto City Hall, Monday, April 22, 2024.|Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
13 of 14
Children play outside as refugees and their families live in makeshift shelters at the Christian worship center Miracle Arena For All Nations in Vaughan, just outside of Toronto, Sunday, April 21, 2024.|Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times