Last Thursday, February 5, the Immigrant Workers Centre of Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean took part in a powerful political and educational activity organized within the framework of International Development Week (IDW), following an invitation from the Centre de solidarité internationale du Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean (CSI-SLSJ).
Representing the Centre, Alonso Rivera Carcamo, Community Organizer in the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region, participated in this collective space of resistance and reflection facilitated by Pia Cerda, Project Officer for Latin America and Global Citizenship Education. Far from being a symbolic exchange, this activity created a space to confront the concrete realities faced daily by immigrant workers, realities shaped by precarity, isolation and systemic injustice.
Through the Comic Book Standing Up for a Just World, interactive exercises and direct discussions, participants shared lived experiences of exploitation, exclusion and silence, but also strategies of solidarity, resistance and collective action. The activity reaffirmed a shared conviction: a just society is not granted from above, it is built through struggle, organization and mutual support.
Structured as a roundtable, the activity encouraged horizontal dialogue and collective empowerment. Participants read the comic together, each voice taking space in turn, followed by role playing exercises rooted in real situations. These scenarios focused on how to break isolation, intervene concretely, offer support and take action when confronted with abuse. They reflected situations involving coworkers, friends, acquaintances and people often left outside institutional protection.
The discussions directly addressed the many forms of abuse experienced by immigrant workers, including exploitation, threats, retaliation and fear linked to immigration status. Crucial questions emerged and were confronted collectively. What concrete resources are available. How can workers be supported without putting them at further risk. What are the impacts on permanent residence applications. How can the CTI IWC be reached and mobilized. What happens when employers retaliate. And how does inaction allow situations to worsen over time.
Thanks to the active and committed participation of those present, the discussion deepened around key issues such as integration under unequal conditions, barriers to communication, forced adaptation, cultural power dynamics, hostile work environments and even the growing impact of climate related realities on precarious workers.
This activity reaffirmed a fundamental truth. Defending immigrant workers’ rights is inseparable from defending the rights of the entire working class. Silence benefits exploitation. Solidarity builds power.
The Immigrant Workers Centre extends its strong thanks to Pia Cerda and the CSI SLSJ for creating this space of political education and collective action, and for inviting the Centre to take part in a struggle that continues well beyond a single event.
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