Event: Tuesday 18 January 2022: JCWI: Report launch: “We also want to be safe”: undocumented migrants facing COVID in a Hostile Environment
New research from the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants shines a spotlight on the devastating impact of Hostile Environment policies on undocumented migrants during the pandemic. Join us on Tuesday 18 January 2022 for the launch of the new report.
Chaired by Clive Lewis MP
With guests:
- Caitlin Boswell, report author
- Francesca Humi, Kanlungan Filipino Consortium, contributor to the report
- Blessing, contributor to the report
“We also want to be safe”: undocumented migrants facing COVID in a Hostile Environment
When the pandemic hit in spring 2020, all our lives changed. But it quickly became clear that while we were all weathering the same storm, we were not all in the same boat.
The COVID pandemic exposed and exacerbated existing inequalities, with Black and brown communities facing higher rates of infection and hospitalisation.
And as the state safety net became a vital lifeline for millions of us, undocumented migrants at the sharp end of the Hostile Environment were excluded from support.
While countries like Portugal, Spain, France and Greece recognised the enormous contributions made by undocumented migrants during the pandemic through regularisation schemes, concessions and subsistence support, the UK Government has consistently prioritised anti-immigrant policies over public health.
Our new report shares the stories of 10 undocumented people, and three people who work alongside and support undocumented migrants. It aims to bring to life some of the experiences of undocumented migrants during the pandemic and shines a light on some of the wider systemic issues they have faced during the pandemic, as a result of the UK’s Hostile Environment policies. Our research makes clear the need for the public COVID inquiry to include the voices and experiences of migrants, including those who are undocumented, and reinforces our calls for an end to Hostile Environment policies.
We hope you can join us for the launch of this important research. We’re delighted to welcome Clive Lewis MP to chair the discussion with report author Caitlin Boswell and report contributors Blessing (not her real name) and Francesca Humi, of Kanlungan Filipino Consortium.