Nearly half of Canadians want more illegal immigrants deported from their country, in part because of safety concerns, a March survey found.
Some 48 percent of Canadians said they support “increasing the deportation of people living in Canada illegally,” in the Reuters/Ipsos survey, and nearly half said those crossing into their country from the U.S. should be sent back. The numbers in support of stronger immigration enforcement are similar to those in the U.S., where half the adults surveyed in a separate poll also said they want more illegal immigrants deported.
A wave of illegal immigrants residing in the U.S. have crossed illegally into Canada in the early months of Donald Trump’s presidency, responding to his promised crackdown on illegal immigration. A large minority of the Canadians asked about these immigrants said the illegal border crossers are making their country “less safe.” (RELATED: Canada Not Tracking Number Of Illegals Crossing Border)
Other Canadians told Reuters it’s one thing to welcome immigrants who come legally, but another matter when they decide to put themselves at the front of the line and enter illegally.
“There are so many people in the word who want to come in and go through the right channels,” Greg Janzen, a leader of a border municipality that has dealt with hundreds of illegal crossers told Reuters. “That’s what’s pissing most people off. These guys are jumping the border.”
The executive director of Canadian Council for Refugees, Janet Dench, added: “Refugees are much more welcomed when we have gone and selected them ourselves as a country, as opposed to refugees who have chosen us.”
Send tips to rachel@
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.