Quebecers step up to open their homes to Ukrainian refugees
CBC
As the federal and provincial governments work out how to streamline visa applications from Ukrainians fleeing warfare, a Quebec City lawyer has already gathered nearly 200 names of Canadians willing to host refugees in their homes.
Alexandre Dufresne said he was unnerved by the barrage of images on the news of ever-escalating Russian attacks on Ukraine.
Dufresne, who has no personal connection to the country, said he figured the best way he could help would be to provide a temporary home to refugees once they find their way to Canada.
He searched for hosting initiatives on Facebook, and when he didn't find any, decided to create a group himself.
"I thought, 'If nobody did it, well, I should,'" Dufresne said in a video call from his home office — one of the rooms he says he's willing to give up to refugees.
He said his home has several spare rooms and a renovated basement, so with a few inflatable mattresses, he could accommodate as many as 16 people.
While Dufresne's effort is aimed at rallying private citizens, local organizations, churches and municipal politicians are also preparing for the imminent arrival of refugees from Ukraine, where the humanitarian crisis appears to get worse by the hour.
Just over a week into the conflict, more than one million people have fled the country, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said he expects millions more will follow unless the fighting stops immediately.
There appeared to be no sign of that Thursday, as Russian forces moved in to take control of more Ukrainian cities.
Against that backdrop, Dufresne created the group, called "Host your Ukrainian refugees."
"I just felt we were dealing with something serious here," Dufresne said. "I am afraid of what could happen with this war. I don't think it's Russia versus Ukraine. It's bigger than that."
Within a short time of the creation of Dufresne's group, 30 people in his personal network had volunteered. Since the French-language newspaper Journal de Montréal wrote about the initiative Wednesday, Dufresne says the offers have been pouring in.
This morning, more than 120 people had signed up on an online form he created to manage the requests as they began to multiply.
Most of them are from Quebec, Dufresne said, but there are also people from Manitoba, Ontario, Alberta and Saskatchewan.
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