Lisbon, June 2025 – As the Portuguese government presses forward with a wave of anti-immigrant measures, a troubling silence persists—not from the immigrant communities themselves, but from their lack of unified resistance.
While Brazilian organizations have spoken out, and activists from across civil society have begun to raise concern, the reality is clear: immigrant communities in Portugal remain divided, reacting in pockets, scattered in voices, and yet to step forward as one movement.
In the face of proposed laws that threaten citizenship rights, family reunification, and basic dignities of migration, the time for fragmented advocacy is over. The hour demands unity, strategy, and collective power.
What’s at Stake?
The new government program—backed by the center-right Democratic Alliance and shaped by far-right influence from the CHEGA party—includes sweeping changes that will reshape the immigrant experience in Portugal:
- Citizenship Delay: A plan to double the residency requirement from 5 to 10 years, denying thousands the pathway to legal belonging.
- Family Separation: Proposals to restrict the right to reunite with loved ones, especially adult children and extended family.
- Labor Gatekeeping: A visa policy shift that allows only so-called “qualified” workers, marginalizing those in construction, caregiving, agriculture, and essential services.
These are not policy adjustments. They are acts of exclusion, signaling to immigrants that they are welcome to work, but not to belong. To contribute, but not to stay. To serve, but not to thrive.
The Walls We Built Between Us
So far, the resistance has been brave—but fragmented.
- The Casa do Brasil de Lisboa has gathered hundreds of signatures defending family reunification.
- Priscila Corrêa, a Brazilian lawyer, launched a petition to protect the five-year citizenship law—nearly 3,000 signatures strong.
- Individual voices from African, Asian, and Latin American communities are surfacing in blogs, local papers, and WhatsApp groups.
Yet these efforts remain isolated, community-specific, and disconnected from one another. As each group fights its own battle, the state continues to legislate behind the shield of division.
A Call to Action: From Many Voices, One Movement
If there is any lesson from this moment, it is this: separated, we are vulnerable. But united, we are a political force.
We call on:
- Angolan and Mozambican youth collectives
- Indian, Pakistani, and Bangladeshi workers’ unions
- Brazilian student groups and legal associations
- Nepali and Filipino caregivers’ networks
- Syrian, Afghan, and Moroccan refugee advocates
...to step forward together.
Let us convene not as separate communities, but as one immigrant bloc — a living, breathing collective that demands:
- The protection of our families
- The right to legal recognition
- Dignified pathways to citizenship
- A Portugal that honors its democratic legacy
What Must Be Done
We need:
- A national immigrant council made of leaders from each community
- A shared manifesto: written by all, owned by all
- Protests, media campaigns, legal challenges, and direct dialogue with Parliament
- Collaboration with Portuguese citizens who stand for inclusion
And above all, we need to believe in our collective power—not as beneficiaries of the system, but as co-owners of Portugal’s future.
From Fragment to Flame
This is not just about resisting a bill. It is about defining who we are, and who we choose to be. The struggle is not merely legal—it is moral, cultural, and existential.
Portugal cannot claim to be a democracy if it silences the people who build its roads, teach its children, care for its elderly, and pay its taxes. And we—immigrants, workers, mothers, students, refugees—cannot afford to wait for change to come from above.
It must rise from within us. Together.
This is the moment. Let us become one voice.
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