Document Type
Article
Abstract
Youth with precarious legal status (PLS) in several provinces are entitled to access primary and secondary education regardless of their immigration status. However, once they graduate from high school their opportunities for post-secondary education are highly constrained. This article sets out an argument for expanding post-secondary educational opportunities for PLS students, drawing on the example of the only existing program in Canada targeting such students: York University’s “Access for Students with Precarious Immigration Status Program.” The article considers possible legal impediments to the establishment of such programs, including offences under Canadian immigration legislation, and argues that charges against post-secondary institutions or their employees are unlikely. Moreover, the article contends that if such charges were pursued, courts would likely find that the relevant legislative provisions are unconstitutional due to overbreadth and because they penalize humanitarian assistance, which was not the intention of the drafters of the provisions. The article also argues that in the unlikely scenario that post-secondary institutions were foundto be in breach of Canadian immigration law for admitting PLS students, this is one of the limited sets of circumstances where pushing back against the law—and even breaking the law if necessary—would be warranted. Overall, the article argues that it is time for faculty, students, and administrators at Canadian colleges and universities to join the fight to create pathways for post-secondary education for PLS students.
Citation Information
Mercier, Elise; Rehaag, Sean; and Rico-Martinez, Francisco.
"Canadian “Dreamers”: Access to Post-Secondary Education."
Osgoode Hall Law Journal
60.3 (2023)
: 699-753.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.60082/2817-5069.3927
https://digitalcommons.osgoode.yorku.ca/ohlj/vol60/iss3/5
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