Canada and Me
Canada is a truly wonderful country. In my opinion, one of the best there are, and definitely better than the other two countries in which I have lived for long periods of time, Israel and the United States. Yet in the foreseeable future I doubt I will sign the Canadian Oath of Citizenship, and hence I doubt I will become a Canadian citizen any time soon. The oath reads:
I affirm that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada, Her Heirs and Successors, and that I will faithfully observe the laws of Canada and fulfil my duties as a Canadian citizen.
The laws are fine; I'm ready to observe them and to fulfill my duties as a Canadian citizen. But allegiance to the Queen? This or any, or a king, or their heirs? No, that's not for me. Royalty represents that some people may be born with a state-sanctioned privilege. This is hard for me to stomach. (And if royalty is a stain, a state-sanctioned stain is harder to stomach).
I can imagine a future time when dire needs, or merely the wish to better take part in the civil life of the country I live in, will lead me to change my position, tell a little white lie, and take the oath. But probably not for a while, and possibly never.
Just to be clear, I regret this greatly. I would much rather be a Canadian citizen.
Quick Links
The section above was written and posted here in January 2008 and it still correctly describes my thoughts. Yet things are happening! A log of developments is in the sections further down. For quick reference, here are some links to the most important documents (with the 2 most important to me, not necessarily to the case, on top):
| Document | Link | Posted / Modified |
|---|---|---|
| My July 2013 opinion document | Response.pdf | 2013-09-23 |
| My affidavit | BAR-NATAN_Affidavit.pdf | 2012-09-16 |
| Decision on the appeal | AppealDecision.pdf | 2014-08-16 |
| Press release for the appeal | OathAppealPressRelease.pdf | 2014-04-06 |
| Our response to the cross-appeal | OathAppellantsFactumAsRespondentsToTheCrossAppeal.pdf | 2014-02-11 |
| The Attorney General's response to our appeal and their cross-appeal (annotated) | Oath_Case_Respondents_factum_090114@.pdf (unannotated version) | 2014-02-11 |
| Our appeal factum | OurAppealFactum.pdf | 2013-11-15 |
| Judge Morgan's decision | McAteer_v._AGC_20130920.pdf | 2013-09-20 |
| Press release | Here | 2013-07-08 |
| Applicant's Factum (in practice, a summary of our case) | APPLICANTS'_FACTUM.pdf | 2013-06-13 |
| Factum of the Attorney General of Canada (the government's response) | AttorneyGeneralFactum.pdf | 2013-07-04 |
| The application to the Ontario Superior Court of Justice | AmendedApplication-121121.pdf | 2012-11-21 |
| Affidavit of Michael McAteer (the "first" applicant) | AFFIDAVIT_OF_MICHAEL_MCATEER.pdf | 2012-11-12 |
| Affidavit of Simone E.A. Topey (the "second" applicant) | Topey_Affidavit.pdf | 2012-11-12 |
| Affidavit of Ashok Charles | AFFIDAVIT_OF_ASHOK_CHARLES.pdf | 2012-11-12 |
| Affidavit of Howard Jerome Gomberg | AFFIDAVIT_OF_HOWARD_JEROME_GOMBERG.pdf | 2012-11-12 |
| Affidavit of Randall White | AFFIDAVIT_OF_RANDALL_WHITE.pdf | 2012-11-12 |
Further documents and links are in Pensieve: Projects: Citizenship. I currently owe the cause $265.50 (see March 24, 2014).
Added August 16, 2014 - Appeal Lost
We lost the appeal (already a few days ago, but I was canoeing with no access to phone/internet, so I only heard about it late yesterday). The judges' decision is here. We will ask for a leave to be heard by the Supreme Court of Canada.
Added May 12, 2014 - Oath Postponed
I was informed today that my citizenship ceremony had been postponed "pending litigation". Yey!
Added May 2, 2014 - Invited to take Oath
I got invited to take the oath on May 20! I won't, of course. I don't know yet if this will kill my citizenship application and I will have to restart, or if Citizenship and Immigration Canada will agree to postpone the oath for as long as the the case is in the courts. We will ask, of course.
Added April 9, 2014 - Legal Team, CTV Interview
Our legal team: Selwyn Pieters, Reni Chang, and Peter Rosenthal (not in pictures: Michael Smith).
Also, my interview on CTV yesterday is here.
Added April 8, 2014 - Appeal Heard
Our appeal was heard today! Needless to say, I thought our side was the more convincing... But more seriously, it very hard to tell what the judges thought, and there isn't much to do other than to wait a few weeks or months until they reach their decision.
Added April 7, 2014 - Radio Interview
My radio interview with Jim Richards of the Jim Richards Showgram is at InterviewWithJimRichards-140407.mp3.
Added April 6, 2014 - Appeal Soon
Our appeal will be heard at the federal court of appeal for Ontario on Tuesday April 8, 2014, at 10:30AM in a courtroom at Osgoode Hall, 130 Queen St. W., Toronto. See OathAppealPressRelease.pdf.
Added March 24, 2014 - Citizenship Test Passed
I passed the citizenship test and the oath is now just 1-2 months away. They said they wouldn't allow me to postpone the oath, so possibly even that will have to go through the courts. Anyway, $5.40 was spent on public transportation to the offices of Citizenship and Immigration Canada, meaning that I owe the cause $54.00 in addition to the $211.50 of Feb 12, 2014, to a total of $265.50.
Added March 6, 2014 - Citizenship Test, 3
I got re-re-invited to take the citizenship test. This time the date is good: March 24, 2014. My first test to take (rather than write) in about 8 years! The previous was when I needed to get a "Powered Vessel Operator's Permit" to operate the backup motor of a sailboat within the Toronto Harbour.
Added February 12, 2014 - Citizenship Test, 2
I got re-invited for the citizenship test. Again unfortunately, the scheduled date is February 21, and on that date I will be in a conference in Vienna. So today I had to send a letter by registered mail asking for a new new date. $10.85 for the postage means that I owe the cause $108.50 in addition to the $103.00 of Dec 16, 2013, to a total of $211.50.
Added February 11, 2014 - Appeal Date Set, New Documents
I just learned that the Court of Appeal for Ontario will be hearing our appeal on April 8, 2014. Also, some new documents posted: Oath_Case_Respondents_factum_090114@.pdf (annotated), Oath_Case_Respondents_factum_090114.pdf (raw), and OathAppellantsFactumAsRespondentsToTheCrossAppeal.pdf.
Added December 16, 2013 - Citizenship Test, 1
I got invited for the citizenship test. Unfortunately I was out of the country for the whole interval between the date the invitation was sent (November 21) and the date of the test (December 9), so I missed the test and today I had to send a letter by registered mail asking for a new date. $10.30 for the postage means that I owe the cause $103.00.
Added November 15, 2013 - Appeal Factum Online
Our appeal factum is now online.
Added September 21, 2013 - Updated "Opinion Document"
I've updated my "opinion document" at http://drorbn.net/Canada/Response to include a preliminary comment on Judge Morgan's decision.
Added September 20, 2013 - First Round Lost
We lost the first round, yet Judge Morgan agrees that freedom of speech is infringed by the oath (see Judge Morgan's decision). I disagree with much (but not all) of the decision, though it will take me/us some time to write a reasoned response.
Added July 22, 2013 - Opinion Document
I've added my "opinion document" at http://drorbn.net/Canada/Response.
Added July 13, 2013 - TV Interview
I had a live-TV interview with Brian Dunstan of Sun News. Here it is, on their page and as my own low-quality rip. (I hope to eventually get the sources from them and put a decent quality version here).
Added July 12, 2013 - Hearing!
We had our court day today! I think it went very well, but the judge makes the decision and we have to see what he thinks. The decision is expected in 1-4 months.
There definitely was interest from the press:
Added July 11, 2013 - Courtroom Update
The courtroom for tomorrow (Friday July 12, 10AM) will be Courtroom 708, 393 University Ave., Toronto Courtroom 5 - 0 at 330 University Ave (West side of University just north of Queen St.).
Also, as of today this page is reverse-chronological rather than chronological, and I have re-ordered the "Quick Links" section.
Added July 8, 2013 - Press Release
CHARTER CHALLENGE TO OATH TO THE QUEEN
This Friday (July 12) the long-standing Charter challenge to the requirement of taking an oath of allegiance to the Queen in order to obtain Canadian citizenship will be argued at the Superior Court of Justice at 10 AM in a downtown Toronto courtroom to be determined. (A second reminder notice will be sent shortly, once the location of the courtroom becomes available.)
The Citizenship Act requires applicants for citizenship to swear or affirm that they will bear true allegiance to Queen Elizabeth the Second and her Heirs and Successors. Many people who feel that the monarchy is an anti-democratic relic of the past conscientiously object to taking such an oath and feel that it should suffice to take an oath to Canada.
Twenty years ago, the late civil rights lawyer Charles Roach launched a Charter challenge to this oath in the Federal Court; he lost. In 2005, Mr. Roach started a similar case in Ontario's Superior Court. The Attorney General of Canada argued that this case should not be heard because of the earlier dismissal by the Federal Court. However, it was ruled that, as a result of changes in Charter jurisprudence in the past twenty years, the case could go ahead.
Mr. Roach died on October 2, 2012. The case is now proceeding on behalf of three new applicants: Michael McAteer (retired former journalist for the Toronto Star), Simone Topey (of the Black Action Defence Committee) and Dror Bar-Natan (Professor of Mathematics at the University of Toronto).
For reasons of conscience and/or religion, the applicants feel that they cannot take the oath. They are arguing that the oath requirement violates their rights to freedom of religion and conscience pursuant to section 2(a) of the Charter, their right to freedom of expression provided by section 2(b) of the Charter, and their equality rights guaranteed by section 15(1) of the Charter. The Attorney General of Canada is arguing that "The inability to enjoy the benefits of citizenship - to hold a Canadian passport and to vote - are amongst the costs reasonably borne by individuals whose personal beliefs run counter to Canada's foundational heritage."
Peter Rosenthal, one of the lawyers representing the applicants, said: "Like the present applicants, Charles Roach really wanted to become a citizen of Canada but his conscience would not allow him to take an oath to a person that symbolized inequality. I hope that that this case will vindicate Mr. Roach's extraordinary efforts to promote equal dignity of all human beings."
For more information, contact any of the applicants or Peter Rosenthal: Michael McAteer, mrpmcateer@bell.net; Simone Topey, racquiah@hotmail.com; Dror Bar-Natan, drorbn@math.toronto.edu; Peter Rosenthal, rosent@math.toronto.edu.
-- CITIZENSHIP OATH CHALLENGE COMMITTEE Ashok Charles. Michael McAteer, Peter Rosenthal
Added July 4, 2013 - Factums
Posted APPLICANTS'_FACTUM.pdf (2-3 weeks ago) and AttorneyGeneralFactum.pdf (today).
Added November 21, 2012 - Added to Lawsuit
Three things today:
- I got an envelope from Citizenship and Immigration Canada, confirming that they are processing my application for citizenship.
- I got confirmation from Peter Rosenthal that I was formally added as an applicant to the application (lawsuit) (ChangingApplicants-121121.pdf), and that the application itself was slightly revised, mostly to reflect the name changes. The revised application is AmendedApplication-121121.pdf.
- I've added a "Quick Links" section near the top of this page.
Added November 12, 2012 - Some Affidavits
Some new affidavits at Pensieve: Projects: Citizenship:
- AFFIDAVIT_OF_MICHAEL_MCATEER.pdf - the first-named applicant.
- Topey_Affidavit.pdf - the second-named applicant.
- AFFIDAVIT_OF_ASHOK_CHARLES.pdf, who signed the oath under duress.
- AFFIDAVIT_OF_HOWARD_JEROME_GOMBERG.pdf, who signed the oath under duress.
- AFFIDAVIT_OF_RANDALL_WHITE.pdf - an expert witness.
Added November 8, 2012 - Australian Oath
My friend Brendan McKay wrote:
- Good luck with that. We in Australia still have that queen person but we got rid of swearing allegiance to her long ago. New citizens have to make the following pledge, but can choose to leave out "under God" if they want:
- From this time forward, [under God,]
- I pledge my loyalty to Australia and its people,
- whose democratic beliefs I share,
- whose rights and liberties I respect, and
- whose laws I will uphold and obey.
Added November 1, 2012 - Cheque Written
Added October 4, 2012 - Roach Passed Away, Hearing Set
Sad news: I have just learned from Peter Rosenthal that the "first applicant" in our lawsuit against the government of Canada, Charlie Roach, passed away a few days ago. The lawsuit moves on, of course.
Good news: I have also learned from Peter that the date for the hearing of the suit has been set to be July 12, 2013.
Added September 22, 2012 - Citizenship Application Sent
I have just sent my application for a Canadian citizenship (the oath itself is still about a year away, assuming reasonable processing times). The fee for the application was $200 and the postage $14.58. I have therefore put aside an amount of $2,145.80 to be spent on the above lawsuit, at the discretion of the lawyer pursuing it, Peter Rosenthal.
Added September 16, 2012 - Lawsuit!
Over the last week I learned of a lawsuit against the government of Canada aiming to drop the requirement to affirm allegiance to a monarch; most likely I will be joining that lawsuit as one of the applicants. I will be posting material related to that lawsuit at Pensieve: Projects: Citizenship. At the moment there are only two files there:
- Roach_Canada_Fresh_application_100912.pdf - the notice of application to the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, as filed on June 18, 2012.
- BAR-NATAN_Affidavit.pdf - my own affidavit on that matter.
Added August 7, 2012 - First Donation
On August 7, 2012 I paid $15.81 for two passport photos of myself and donated $158.10 to Citizens for a Canadian Republic. Those photos look just like passport photos; evidence on the right.
Added July 19, 2012 - Citizenship Process Started
On July 19, 2012 I have decided to start the process of becoming a Canadian citizen on July 31, 2012, exactly 10 years after my arrival to Canada and long after my wife and kids have become citizens. I will however uphold the following:
- For any $ amount I will be spending on becoming Canadian (fees, photographs, photocopies, stamps, anything) I will donate 10 times as much to Citizens for a Canadian Republic or a similar organization. If the expense will force a delay in the proceedings, the proceedings will be delayed. A summary of these expenses and donations will be posted here.
- On the day that I will take my citizenship oath (if it will not be changed by then), I will write a personal yet public letter to the Canadian monarch acknowledging being bound by the oath yet asking her/him to release me from the "allegiance to a monarch" part of that oath, and explaining my reasons for wishing not to be bound by an oath to a monarch.
