As Canada follows the global trend of hostility toward migrants, refugees, and even permanent residents, sanctuary has emerged from church basements to become a defining tactic of migrant justice activism globally. Today, sanctuary includes campaigns for access to services, anti-deportation efforts, and struggles against police collaboration with immigration enforcement. But is it enough?

Organizing Sanctuary draws on interviews with migrant justice activists, social movement archives, and policy documents to assess Canadian urban sanctuary organizing over the last four decades. Karl Gardner explores the tensions between “sanctuary from above,” exemplified by institutional and policy reforms, and “sanctuary from below,” involving grassroots organizing with service providers and migrant communities. He then argues for an abolitionist approach – one informed by Black liberation, No Borders, and decolonial movements – that is more necessary than ever.

This powerful, compassionate work combines an urgent call to action with a roadmap for building radical sanctuaries everywhere.