New West family won’t be deported

School board trustee Mark Gifford opened a Tuesday morning tweet with one word that summed up a series of events involving a family facing deportation to Mexico: “Win!”

Gifford was celebrating news of the halt to the July 8 deportation, adding there was still work to do to keep the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) away from schools.

The lives of Guadalupe Adrianna Rosales Contreras (who goes by Adrianna) and Jose Alberto Vargas Mendez (who goes by Alberto) were turned upside down when Contreras dropped off their daughter, Sofia, at Lord Tweedsmuir Elementary last November.

 Sanctuary Health, a not-for-profit that champions access to services for all – regardless of status – says Contreras was stalked and stopped by officials from the CBSA; the family later found they were going to be deported. A handful of rallies were held, including one in May, which saw upwards of 100 people in attendance.

“We are in the midst of trying to regulate our immigration status, and Canada decided to deport us before even processing our application,” Contreras explained in a Sanctuary Health video.

“We ask Canada to give us an opportunity to be here, we are an honest and hard-working family, and we only want an opportunity to keep building a better life for ourselves and our daughter,” added Mendez.

The opportunity to stay would mean escaping imminent danger. According to the family, Mendez was targeted and recruited to participate in organized crime. When he refused, the family says threats were made against his life – the catalyst for their departure more than 10 years ago.

Mendez is also taking medication for a condition called Ankylosing Spondylitis, a verpainful condition that Sanctuary Health says could leave him immobile if not treated properly. Because his status is also in question, he hasn’t been able to work; Mendez is a skilled carpenter.

Sofia, who just finished kindergarten, was born in Canada, and has lived in BC her whole life. The youngster wants to be a doctor when she grows up, but the family knows that dream will be much less of a reality if they’re forced to return to Mexico.

The case has also reignited conversations at the school board around the district’s sanctuary schools policy; New Westminster was the first school district in BC to institute one. The latest stats show there were six students (seven families) in the district for the 2021-2022 school year; there were five students (six families) in the 2020-2021 year.

“We are now focused on writing to [Immigration] Minister [Sean] Fraser and asking him to grant the family's applications for permanent residence on humanitarian and compassionate grounds,” says Sanctuary Health in a Facebook update. It’s since posted a new link where people can send letters and messages of support. 

There is no timeline on a decision.