Help a teenager with Cerebral Palsy and his family get PR

Hi there! My name is Emmanuel, I’m the 15 years old Arlette's son, I’m from Mexico, and I have spastic cerebral palsy, which basically means my legs refuse to listen to me. I want to apply for my Canadian Permanent Residency on Humanitarian and Compassionate grounds.

This is my story.

Birth

Unfortunately, I was born prematurely, while my mom was working as a nurse in a public hospital in Mexico. It was so full that my mom had to be transferred in an ambulance to a private hospital, losing valuable time.

I was so unstable that I needed CPR, and the pediatrician said that I wouldn’t even live over 72 hours.

I had cardiac insufficiency, Respiratory distress syndrome, Pulmonary Hypertension, Intracranial Hemorrhage, Convulsive Crisis, Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia, Acute Kidney Insufficiency, and Necrotizing Enterocolitis, among others.

I spent 6 weeks in the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit), and after that, I continued my recovery at home.

I was diagnosed with spastic cerebral palsy until I was two years old. Since then, I have been rehabilitating daily.

Situation in Mexico City

I always had private medical attention because in Mexico, there are no adequate public programs for cerebral palsy treatment.

It was complicated to find doctors specialized in cerebral palsy. However, we found an excellent orthopedic pediatrician, and I suffered 10 surgeries trying to improve my medical condition.

In Mexico City, life was very difficult for me. Sidewalks don’t have ramps, there are not enough designated parking spots for disabled people, there are no elevators or they do not work, and the public transport is not adapted.

The federal and local governments generally do not invest in infrastructure for disabled people.

Schools in Mexico

Unfortunately, schools in Mexico are not inclusive. The majority do not accept people with disabilities, some of them have a separate classroom for people like me, and the few schools with inclusive programs are pretty expensive!

My mom struggled to find a kindergarten; only one of the ten we visited accepted me. And when I entered elementary school, my first school always kept me in a separate classroom and never let me attend regular classes with the other kids.

I changed schools, but the new school placed me in grade 1 instead of 3, even though I scored 9 out of 10 in my placement exam. I was extremely sad that I couldn’t study with people my age.

At that time, I felt just horrible. People discriminated against me for my condition, and I was mostly by myself; people did not integrate me. I wanted to play with other students, but they rejected me.

I was just crying every night. I felt extremely sad because I did not want to be treated this way. I even identified with the song “Creep” from Radiohead because people treated me like a monster for being different from others.

The condition that the school put on me is that my mom would be my supporting assistant. She was with me every day for my first 3 years.

The school was not adapted; there was no elevator, parking, accessible washroom, etc. I even fell on the stairs a few times due to a lack of infrastructure.

Moving to Canada

Due to this situation, our doctors recommended that we move to a country with the infrastructure and the means to continue my treatment.

To make matters worse, in December 2018, my dad lost his job and our health insurance policy, preventing us from using private medical care due to its high costs. So my parents decided to move to Canada.

Then the COVID pandemic struck, and we had no choice but to remain in Mexico for one more year. It was very challenging, since COVID is particularly dangerous for me due to my Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia, an asthma-like disease that affects my lungs.

We lived in an apartment, and our neighbours were getting infected, so we even had to move to my grandparents’ house to avoid contagion. Even worse, there was no vaccine available in Mexico for children like my brother and me.

Finally, we arrived in Canada on October 11, 2021

Life in Canada

Here, in Vancouver, everything is better. I was excited to attend school with an appropriate grade for my age (grade 7). I was so nervous. I was afraid of not being accepted and suffering discrimination like in Mexico.

I am very happy living here. I finally found a place I can call home! Everyone accepts me for who I am, without caring about my disability or what I can or can’t do. I am living the best years of my life!

I like playing piano, attending school with everyone else, playing soccer, going to the beach, learning a lot, and making many friends. Here, I have friends for the first time in my life! They even visited me at the hospital.

On July 14, 2023, I suffered my eleventh surgery to prevent a hip dislocation because I had a 69% displacement of my left hip. I remained at the BC Children’s Hospital for four months.

In the hospital, I discovered that the medical attention towards kids is way better than in Mexico. I had good food, I could use an Xbox and a Wii, excellent medical expenses, someone to talk about my situation, therapies, fun, and many things to do!

In Canada, I have access to appropriate wheelchairs, walkers, AFOs, and other medical equipment, therapies at home and school and everything I could need. I can use the public transport, enjoy the beaches and visit different places.

Around the same time I was at the hospital, my brother started to feel ill. Since then, the doctors still do not know precisely what is happening to him. They recently discovered that he had a low platelet count, high bilirubin and had lost a lot of weight (six kilos), among other symptoms.

Fortunately, the doctors have already discarded leukemia, cancer, or an autoimmune disease like lupus. Although I am very worried about him, I am confident that soon the doctors will find out what is happening to him.

He started with the symptoms in Mexico, and none of the doctors we consulted found anything about it!

Permanent Residency

Remaining in Canada will allow me to achieve my dream of walking alone, thanks to the unconditional support from the BC government, my teachers, classmates and neighbours.

I can attend university here, be a great researcher and historian, and support other people with disabilities. I can go to the beach, use my tricycle, and use public transportation, the school bus, and community pools.

Enjoy the Vancouver climate, which is the best for treating my bronchopulmonary dysplasia (an asthma-like disease).

My brother can get excellent treatment, attend university, study philosophy, and be a great researcher. My mom can work as a Registered Nurse, and my dad can obtain his CPA designation.

As a family, we can contribute to this beautiful country and repay everything it has done for us.

Due to my medical condition and our unique situation, we can only apply for Permanent Residency on Humanitarian and Compassionate grounds.

Sadly, to make things worse, last year my father suffered a concussion when he was working at UPS Canada (an 11-pound package hit him on the head), and he is currently dealing with the post-concussion symptoms with a very low income.

I don’t know when he will get better. My mom has been caring for the three of us and working part-time as a nanny. Unfortunately, her income can barely cover our living costs.

Here's how you can help us

Our family needs your help and generosity! You can help us pay our permanent residency expenses:

Permanent Residency application fees: 3,480

Immigration Lawyer Services: 10,000

Other Expenses (legal translations, medical exams): 1,000

Total: 14,480 CAD

Every single dollar counts! Any kind of help, no matter how small it is, would mean a lot to us. Thank you so much for your support!