BAYAN BC | PRESS RELEASE
Workers, Migrants of the World Unite!
VANCOUVER, BC – May 5, 2026. –“Workers of the World Unite! Migrants of the World Unite! Stand up and Fight!”, echoed throughout Commercial Drive on Sunday, May 3rd as marchers led by Migrante BC, International Migrants Alliance, and BAYAN BC and joined by various organizations called for unity with workers and migrants, whose rights and livelihood have declined due to US-led wars.
The May 3rd march, held in recognition of International Workers’ Day, culminated in a program and BBQ at the Grandview Park. Leaders from various organizations from Pinoy Pride Vancouver Society, Anakbayan, Gabriela, ILPS Canada, ICHRP-Canada, CPSHR, and Canada Palestine Association spoke of the fight for human rights, for Palestine, anti-imperialism, and queer Filipino rights; all linked their resistance to the liberation of workers and migrants around the world. They also rallied in support for a genuinely democratic and sovereign Philippines as a step towards the liberation of all.
“Today we are marching to celebrate the victories and gains of the labour and migrant justice movement amidst the US-Israel war on Iran that has exacerbated an already worsening global economic crisis, and the trampling of sovereignty in countries like the Philippines, Cuba, Venezuela, Yemen, Iraq, Palestine and many other countries in the name of ‘US Geopolitical interest,” said CJ Demanarig, Deputy Secretary General of Migrante BC. Speakers upheld the internationalist spirit of fighting for workers and migrants, and explained that imperialists like the US have undermined sovereignty in Venezuela, Iran, Cuba, and provided military and economic aid to suppress liberation movements in places like Palestine and the Philippines.
Members of the International Migrants Alliance (IMA) and Migrante BC performed the popular song A Desalambrar / Dapat Bawiin in both Spanish and Tagalog, a protest song written by Chilean singer and political activist Victor Jara who was killed by Pinochet’s army in Chile. The song spoke of the enduring resistance of Filipino farmers rising up for their right to land and was dedicated to the Negros 19 victims who were massacred by the US-backed Philippine military. A vigil was also later held to honour the lives of the Negros 19.
Migrant organizations spoke not only of the importance of addressing issues affecting migrants here in BC, such as anti-migrant policies like Bill C-12, they also called for an end to the exploitation that forces many to become migrant workers in the first place. “As migrant workers we link nations across the international working class and must hold all governments accountable for exploitation and forced migration”, said Sabrina Qistina, IMA Canada Coordinator. Within the next few months, IMA will launch its ‘Defend Migrants’ alliance campaign to coordinate networks of support for migrants in opposition to Canada’s growing anti-migrant rhetoric.
Milo Canlas, BAYAN Canada interim secretary general, elaborated on the hardships faced by Filipino migrants and said, “Many Filipinos go abroad in the first place because there are no jobs back home that will pay them enough to survive. Their remittances are getting stretched more and more thinly, as prices rise”. BAYAN BC called for genuine agrarian reform and the P1200 national minimum wage in the Philippines, demands that would allow Filipino farmers and workers to stay and work in the Philippines.
The organizers successfully brought together various organizations in a show of strong solidarity and internationalist working-class unity – a unity which continues to resist imperialism’s exploitation of workers and migrants, US-led wars, and governments like that in the Philippines which are subservient to imperialist dictates. ###
For Reference:
Noa Sison, BAYAN BC Representative
Email: [email protected]