EVERY DAY, THOUSANDS OF IMMIGRANTS land at Pearson airport in Mississauga, Ontario. Some come on temporary work visas, others on international-student permits. Some are on a pathway to permanent residency, while others claim refugee status as soon as they arrive at customs. All of them want safety, prosperity and freedom. To document these newcomers in their first few months in Canada, photojournalist lan Brown spent weeks reaching out to settlement agencies, refugee centres and community groups. He met people fleeing the Taliban in Afghanistan, Ukrainian refugees who left their families in a war zone and young professionals from India seeking better education and job prospects. He criss-crossed the Greater Toronto Area, photographing them in the neighbourhoods they now call home. "Everyone I met was resolved and committed to bettering their lives and integrating into Canadian society," he says.
Rashid Rashidi and Gulshan Mosleh
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: AFGHANISTAN
ARRIVED IN CANADA: JUNE 2022
This story is from the July 2024 edition of Maclean's.
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This story is from the July 2024 edition of Maclean's.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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