Putting Syrians back in the driver's seat in St. John's

A St. John's woman is going the extra mile to help Syrian refugees overcome a road block.

Natasha Blackwood, who works with the Refugee and Immigrant Advisory Council, said she was baffled when she heard repeatedly that Syrians who moved to Newfoundland and Labrador weren't allowed to drive because they didn't speak English.

"I was like: what do you mean they aren't allowed to drive? Of course they are allowed drive?" Blackwood told the St. John's Morning Show.

"I've been to foreign countries where I couldn't speak the language and I was able to rent a car. Why aren't they allowed to drive?" she said.

So she called the Department of Motor Vehicle Registration to check it out herself.

I was like: what do you mean they aren't allowed to drive?- Natasha Blackwood

"They said no they have to do it themselves," said Blackwood.

"There are no Arabic interpreters — they have to be totally proficient in the [English] language which takes, like, at least a year and I didn't think that was right. So, I looked into it more."

She then called upper management, and found out that applicants really are allowed to have an interpreter, it just was not widely known at the department.

That, says Blackwood, was a start.

Phone arguments and jumping hoops

"So through lots of jumping through hoops and printing documents and phone arguments we were able to find a volunteer interpreter, an Arabic-speaker. They could sit with them and help with the written language on the test," she said.

And not taking no for an answer worked.

"It was still a struggle, it sometimes takes a few tries. So the first man I helped it took three tries to pass the written test and two times to do the road test. But he was an ambulance driver and a taxi driver in Syria."

"He really wanted to drive here so he can work and support his family. Now he has a mini-van and drives his kids around"

Blackwood says that man has since helped a lot of his Syrian friends get their drivers' licenses too.