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\centerline{\red This is a DRAFT}


\vskip 3mm

\rightline{November 30, 2015}

\noindent Citizenship Judge Albert Wong,
\newline Citizenship and Immigration Canada,
\newline 200 Town Centre Court, Suite 370,
\newline Scarborough, ON M1P 4X8

\vskip 5mm

Dear Citizenship Judge Albert Wong,

\vskip 3mm

In specific reference to the Citizenship Oath, the Court of Appeal for Ontario, in its decision against my co-applicants and myself (McAteer v.\ Canada, 2014 ONCA 578, paragraph 76\footnote{see \url{http://www.ontariocourts.ca/decisions/2014/2014ONCA0578.htm}.}), had written

\begin{quote}
``\ldots the appellants have the opportunity to publicly disavow what they consider to be the message conveyed by the oath.~\ldots''
\end{quote}

As explicitly suggested by the Court, {\bf I hereby completely disavow whatever I thought the Citizenship Oath conveyed when I took it earlier today} (though if an oath can possibly stand for more than what the oath-taker thinks it stands for, that extra bit possibly remains standing, possibly without my awareness or consent).

I find it regrettable that I have to do this; I have done my best to avoid it. In my mind, oaths are not meant to be disavowed. But I must have misunderstood something about what oaths mean in Canada, and the courts have put me right.

In lieu of a further explanation for my distaste for the oath, I attach a copy of the letter I sent you prior to this ceremony.

There are many other residents of Canada who are refraining from taking Canadian citizenship, or are taking it with great discomfort, or have taken it with great discomfort, only because of the monarchy part of the oath. A part of the purpose of this letter and a part of the purpose of making it public is to make it widely known that a partial resolution, suggested by the courts, is to take the oath and immediately disavow its meaning. I will maintain a web site, \url{http://disavowal.ca}, containing the story of this disavowal and of past ones, and encouraging others to share their disavowal stories. Canada stands to gain if this will open the road for more of its residents to take citizenship with less discomfort.

Needless to say, I remain subject to the laws of Canada and to basic principles of democracy, human rights, and decency towards others. I am proud to have become a citizen of this wonderful country, and I look forward to fulfilling my duties as a citizen.

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{\obeylines\noindent Sincerely,
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{\red unsigned draft}
\vskip 2mm
\noindent Dror Bar-Natan,
\noindent Toronto, November 2015.}

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\noindent CC: The Honourable John McCallum, P.C., M.P., Minister of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship; The Honourable Jody Wilson-Raybould, P.C., M.P., Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada; some press.

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\centerline{\red This is a COPY}

\rightline{November 13, 2015}

\noindent Citizenship Judge Albert Wong,
\newline Citizenship and Immigration Canada,
\newline 200 Town Centre Court, Suite 370,
\newline Scarborough, ON M1P 4X8

\vskip 5mm

Dear Citizenship Judge Albert Wong,

\vskip 3mm

This is to let you know that immediately after my citizenship ceremony on November 30, 2015, I will be following the advice of Weiler J.A., Lauwers J.A., and Pardu J.A., in their ruling on McAteer v.\ Canada against my co-appellants and myself, 2014 ONCA 578, paragraph 76\footnote{see \url{http://www.ontariocourts.ca/decisions/2014/2014ONCA0578.htm}.}:

\begin{quote}
``\ldots the appellants have the opportunity to publicly disavow what they consider to be the message conveyed by the oath.~\ldots''
\end{quote}

As a further explanation, allow me to quote from my own September 2012 affidavit to the court in this matter\footnote{see \url{http://drorbn.net/AcademicPensieve/Projects/Citizenship/BAR-NATAN_Affidavit.pdf}.}:

\begin{quote}
I find the phrase ``I affirm that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada, Her Heirs and Successors'' repulsive. To me, it states that some people, the royals and their heirs, are born with privilege. It is a historic remnant of a time we all believe has passed, in which the children of peasants could be nothing but peasants, and in which aristocracy existed as a closed club.

I appreciate that the monarchy in Canada is mostly symbolic (I could not live here had it been anything more). Yet it is precisely the wrong symbol: a symbol that we aren't all equal and that some of us have to bow to others for reasons of ancestry alone.

\ldots\ I feel that the requirement of taking the (first half of) the oath is tantamount to hazing. To be initiated as a Canadian, I am required to participate in an initiation ritual that I find disturbing and humiliating. It is a ritual that has no practical meaning and only carries what I regard as a repugnant symbolic meaning. Moreover, it is a ritual that born-Canadians are not subject to.

\ldots\ I feel there is much value in becoming a Canadian citizen. Should this Application be dismissed and possible subsequent appeals be denied, I will likely hold my nose and shut my eyes, surrender to some hazing and unhappily take the oath of citizenship in contradiction to my conscientious beliefs as indicated above.
\end{quote}

{\obeylines\noindent Sincerely,
\includegraphics[width=80mm]{Signature-151113-120051.jpg}
\noindent Dror Bar-Natan, CIC Client ID 51976833.}

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\noindent CC: The Honourable John McCallum, P.C., M.P., Minister of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship; The Honourable Jody Wilson-Raybould, P.C., M.P., Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada; some press.

%Minister@cic.gc.ca
%The Honourable John McCallum, P.C., M.P.
%365 Laurier Avenue West
%Ottawa, Ontario
%K1A 1L1

%The Honourable Jody Wilson-Raybould
%Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada
%284 Wellington Street
%Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0H8

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