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Gladys Daoud
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Gladys Daoud
2013-05-07 12:13
Thank you.
Mr. Chairman, members of the committee, ladies and gentlemen, in 1970-71, the then Government of Canada decided to intercede on behalf of 17 very desperate Jewish families who were trapped in Iraq, with the objective of reuniting them with their Canadian sons and daughters. Your predecessors exchanged our freedom for bales of wheat with a country in desperate need of feeding its population. I owe my life today to that endeavour.
My name is Gladys Daoud. I arrived in Canada on August 28, 1971. I am a management consultant and a lecturer by profession. I have two degrees, a Bachelor of Arts and an MBA, both from McGill. I have two children, a lawyer and a director of finance, as well as two grandchildren. I consider myself blessed to be a citizen of Canada.
This is in great contrast to my life in Iraq.
I was born in Baghdad into a wealthy and prominent Jewish family. On my father's side, my grandfather was a wealthy landowner who owned sizable tracts of land all over Iraq. On my mother's side, my grandfather was a banker who was in charge of the country's treasury.
After World War I, Iraq became independent from the Ottoman Empire. Jews played an important role in the financial, cultural, and political life of the new country. Iraqi Jews occupied prominent positions in the ministries of finance and justice and in Parliament. Furthermore, Jewish lawyers were instrumental in drafting the constitution of the new state.
My grandfather sent my father and his two brothers to France for their education. My father became a doctor, and was lucky to return to Baghdad before World War II. His two brothers, one a real estate developer and the other a medical student, ended their short lives in a concentration camp in Germany, but that is another story.
My father returned to Iraq and established his medical practice after serving in the Iraqi army as a colonel. My parents' life in Iraq until the creation of the State of Israel was relatively happy, even though it was marred by tragic events that occurred at various intervals. For example, my paternal grandfather was murdered. His murder was not investigated by the police, and his murderer was never brought to justice.
In 1941 the people of Baghdad, encouraged by the pro-Nazi government at the time, went on a murderous rampage in the Jewish quarter, killing close to 200 Jews and pillaging homes and businesses. My maternal grandfather miraculously survived despite being hunted by rebels trying to get hold of the key to the country's treasury. In spite of that, my parents endured and prospered.
After the creation of the State of Israel, the Iraqi government embarked on a policy of ethnic cleansing and persecution of its Jewish population. Prominent Jews were publicly hanged. Jewish businesses were confiscated. Import licences were cancelled. Jewish public servants were fired.
Jews were forbidden from leaving the country under the pretense that they would join the Zionist enemy and attack Iraq. Under international pressure, the government finally relented, and allowed Jews to leave Iraq provided they abandoned all of their assets in favour of the state. Out of 150,000 Jews, 140,000 left the country, abandoning all of their possessions with the exception of one suitcase of clothes.
Those who stayed behind were deluded optimists who believed that the violence directed at the Jews would pass, and that coexistence in harmony with their Muslim and Christian neighbours was still possible.
Things took a turn for the worse in 1963, after the Baath regime took power. Their first priority was to embark on an ethnic cleansing policy towards the Iraqi Jews. They banned all exit visas for Jews, and actively promoted a culture of hatred and incitement towards them.
I was a teenager going to school in 1967 when the Six Day War took place. I saw my entire world collapse around me. All Jews in Baghdad were declared spies and enemies of the people. The radio was blaring all day, calling the people to action to kill the Jews. Needless to say, we were terrified, and we had nowhere to go.
The government proceeded with a plan of total isolation and economic strangulation. Employers were instructed to fire their Jewish employees. Christian and Muslim co-workers and business partners were terrified of being associated with enemies of the state, and thus all Jewish-owned businesses closed their doors, and our school lost all its teachers. Our Muslim and Christian friends whom we grew up with no longer dared to speak to us.
My father's medical clinic was adjacent to the local government intelligence office. His patients were afraid of being seen there, so the only patients he treated were policemen and the intelligence officers who were treated free of charge while keeping a close watch on his movements.
As Jewish students, we were refused admittance to any higher education. The few students who were already enrolled in university were regularly beaten by their classmates while the teachers and administration turned a blind eye.
I finished my government high school exam in June 1967. I ranked second in all of Iraq and was immediately accepted into Baghdad University. In fact, I had also applied to McGill and MIT and was accepted at both of these universities. However, on learning that I was of the Jewish faith, my acceptance at Baghdad University was retracted and I was refused a passport to study abroad. For the four years that followed, I endured the life of a non-person and watched all my hopes and aspirations go to ashes as I sat confined to my room, between four walls, thinking of what other young people all over the world were doing.
I applied for a secretarial job at the Belgian consulate and was accepted. Three weeks later, I was called into the consul's office and informed very politely that although I was not being asked to leave, they had received word that my father would be imprisoned should I not leave immediately. Needless to say, I did just that.
My family's bank accounts were frozen, our property was confiscated, and we were only able to survive thanks to the money that my mother had the foresight to bury in our garden. We were forbidden to leave Baghdad. Our telephone line was cancelled, and we could not meet with other Jewish families since this could lead to an accusation that we were conspiring against the state. Our condition was desperate.
To make things worse, the government decided to publicly execute 14 Iraqis in 1969, most of whom were innocent Jews. I personally knew a couple of them who were students like me, unable to work or study and trying to keep busy by learning a foreign language. They were hanged in the public square and the population was given the day off and invited to gather and dance in celebration underneath the dangling corpses. I still have nightmares about being back in Baghdad and reliving the anguish of those days.
Those were not the only Jews who lost their lives. Every so often, a Jew would randomly be arrested, never to be heard from again. Their families to this day have no closure.
The situation was so desperate that we had no choice but to seek to escape by any means possible. Many left on foot or on the back of a mule, across the mountains in northern Iraq and into Iran with the help of Kurdish guides. Some were arrested and brought back. Those who were carrying any diplomas or valuables with them would try to flush them down a toilet so as not to provide proof about their intended flight. These secret departures added to the despair of those left behind. They saw their close friends and relatives disappear while they were left behind not knowing what the next day might bring.
On April 17, 1971, with one suitcase of clothes and some pocket change, my parents and I locked the front door of our home in Baghdad for the last time and started a long journey to come to Montreal to seek a new beginning.
I was free at last to make a life for myself. That day will remain etched in my heart and memory for all time. I am thankful for the many blessings our great country offers.
By the mid-1970s, most of the Jews were gone from Iraq. We owe our survival to all the people in the free world who demonstrated on our behalf and put pressure on the authorities to intercede for our freedom.
Today there are five elderly Jews remaining in Baghdad.
The 2,500 years of history and Jewish tradition by the rivers of Babylon came to an abrupt and gruesome end. The religious shrines, artifacts, and books of learning that remain in Iraq should be the only reminders, except, as we speak, the Iraqi authorities are trying to deface these shrines and erase any reminder of the Jewish existence.
I hope this story serves as a reminder to all of us to remain vigilant and stand up against all incitement of hatred, racism, and discrimination. Let us always strive to uncover the truth and seek justice for all.
Thank you very much for your time and for the privilege to tell my story.
View Hélène Laverdière Profile
NDP (QC)
Are you able to be in touch with those five people to see...? No. I see; it's all impossible.
I have one last question. You were also talking about shrines and monuments. I understand from what you're saying that some of them have been preserved up to now, but I presume some have been lost too. How do you see the future, and what can be done to preserve those monuments and shrines?
Gladys Daoud
View Gladys Daoud Profile
Gladys Daoud
2013-05-07 12:45
I am part of an international committee to try to preserve those shrines, because, again, when the U.S. army went into Iraq, they were able to salvage a lot of the parchments, the papers, the documents that were confiscated by Saddam. They found them in a basement. They were flooded and damaged to a large extent, but they brought everything to the U.S., and they have them. They're holding them at the state department, so it's a tug of war. The Iraqi government lays claim to them, and we are trying to salvage them because we feel it's part of our heritage. We don't know; the Iraqi government could put pressure and claim them for themselves any day, so we're trying to repair them and at least have an exhibition to be able to see the contents. These are just the documents.
Going back to the shrines, there is in particular the shrine of the Prophet Ezekiel. As in any other religion, whether Christian or Jewish, the Muslim religion came after, and they literally claimed a church. We know the Church of Constantinople used to be a church, but now it's a mosque. They would automatically erect a mosque on top of every temple or shrine that belonged to another religion. The tomb itself, up to two years ago we had some Iraqi friends who were able to take pictures to show the Hebrew writing on the tomb. We put pressure through articles in international newspapers, and then they stopped trying to deface it.
The population itself believes we were rightfully settled in this country. It's funny, because the first government that came after Saddam wanted to meet with us. I travelled to England to meet with the minister, who told us they wanted us to take care of our shrines, because they think that because we left there is a curse on Iraq and the Iraqis. He said that. That's why we started a committee to try to fulfill that, that we should try to at least take care of the remaining shrines in Iraq.
Charlotte Bastien
View Charlotte Bastien Profile
Charlotte Bastien
2013-05-07 8:50
Good morning and thank you very much.
I will make my presentation, after which Robert and I will be pleased to answer your questions.
Today's presentation will be about benefits and services that Veterans Affairs Canada provides to our veterans.
Who do we serve? We serve over 200,000 clients ranging in age from 19 to 90. These clients include war-service veterans, Canadian armed forces personnel and veterans, RCMP veterans and members, as well as survivors.
There are over 700,000 veterans in Canada, of whom at least 200,000 contact the department to ask for assistance.
You will see that the department's program expenses for veterans are
of over $3.568 billion, of which 90% flows directly to veterans.
On the next slide you will see the demographic profile, of participants which has changed over the last few years. Unfortunately, we saw the decline and attrition of Second World War veterans and Korean War veterans, as well as an increase in the number of veterans from the modern era.
The average age at release from the Canadian Forces is approximately 35 years old. The average age of Canadian Forces veterans is 58 years old.
As to the benefits and services we offer, there are disability pensions and related allowances to recognize pain and suffering resulting from service-related injuries. We have program expenditures of $1.6 billion for disability pension and allowances flowing to nearly 115,000 veterans and survivors.
We also provide war veterans with an allowance, that is financial assistance for low-income veterans of the  Second World War and Korea. Expenditures for that program total $11 million, paid to just over 4,000 recipients. Those who receive the supplementary allowances may also be eligible for other special allowances, including allowances for health care, clothing and exceptional disability.
We offer treatment benefits for all veterans, traditional and modern day. We provide a range of treatment benefits that we refer to as the 14 programs of choice, which include support for aids for daily living, ambulance services, audio services, dental services, hospital services, medical services, medical supplies, nursing services, oxygen therapy, prescription drugs, prosthetics, orthotics, related health services, special equipment, and vision care.
The department also provides support for services such as health professionals, occupational stress injury clinics, and medicare premiums.
Veterans may qualify to receive financial support for one or more treatment benefits if they are receiving a disability benefit, participating in a rehabilitation program, receiving the VIP, the veterans independence program for long-term care, the war veterans allowance, or the Canadian Forces income support.
The expenditures on treatment benefits were $538 million last year, paid to over 97,000 veterans.
On health-related travel, travel expenses incurred by a veteran when travelling to receive health care services or benefits may be reimbursed by the department. Health-related travel costs include items such as transportation, parking, meals, lodging, out-of-province travel, and when required, an escort, meaning someone to accompany the veteran if he is travelling to receive treatment.
Recent changes to the program mean that veterans do not need to submit receipts with their travel claims unless we ask for them. A veteran must still obtain receipts or appointment verifications and retain the original receipts for one year in case they are requested. We have simplified the process for the reimbursement of health-related travel for veterans.
The veterans independence program, or VIP, has been referred to as the gold standard of home care programs. It is designed to assist veterans and survivors in maintaining their independence through the provision of home and community care, and includes services such as personal care, housekeeping, ground maintenance, ambulatory services, transportation services, home adaptation, and nursing home care.
In budget 2012, one of the specific measures announced included replacing the existing contribution agreement for the housekeeping and ground maintenance component of the VIP with an annual grant, which began in January 2013. Recipients of these services no longer need to obtain, track, and submit the receipts and wait to be reimbursed. This makes it faster and easier for them to get the support they need when they need it. The initiative is cutting red tape by reducing millions of transactions each year for more than 100,000 veterans, caregivers, and survivors who receive assistance for services such as mowing the lawn, removing snow, or cleaning the house.
With the new program, as I explained, instead of sending receipts in on a monthly or regular basis, veterans now receive up front twice a year two installments of the financial arrangement that they require for their groundskeeping and housekeeping.
With respect to the long-term care program, veterans are supported in three long-term care settings: in community beds in facilities that provide nursing home care to veterans and other provincial residents; in contract beds in facilities with beds designated through contractual arrangements for priority access for veterans; and in departmental beds such as Ste. Anne's hospital, which is the only federally owned facility. The eligibility differs and depends on the type of military service, income, and whether the need for long-term care is due to a service-related disability.
Most war veterans are eligible for care in a contract or community bed, or at Ste. Anne's hospital. Their care does not need to be related to a service-related disability. They may be eligible if they served overseas during the war, or if they are in receipt of a disability pension, or are low-income war veterans.
Canadian Forces veterans are eligible for support in a community bed if the need for long-term care is due to an illness or injury directly related to their military service. The department is financially supporting over 8,700 veterans in 1,750 nursing homes and other long-term care facilities across Canada.
In 2006, Veterans Affairs Canada introduced the New Veterans Charter, which provides financial security to veterans who are unsuitable for civil employment and provides programs to help injured veterans live a healthier, richer and more independent life following their military service. The new charter includes the following elements: the Disability Payments Program; the Rehabilitation Program; the Allowance for Temporary Earnings Loss Program, now prolonged and improved; career transition services; the Permanent Impairment Allowance and its supplements; the Income Support Allowance for Canadian Forces, and Supplementary Retirement Benefits.
As of December 2012, over 40,000 veterans and families have had access to various programs or elements of the New Veterans Charter. Disability payments make up the largest of programs resulting from the New Veterans Charter. The program aims at recognizing and compensating the economic effects of disability or death that are service-related, by providing lump sum payments. In 2011-2012, that program made up 82% of expenditures related to the new charter. That represented $360 million in program expenditures under the new charter, out of a total $440 million.
Improvements were made to the new charter in 2011, in order to correct unexpected gaps in the areas of financial and other assistance. These improvements guarantee that veterans that are registered in the rehabilitation program have a minimum income of $40,000 per year. These improvements also increase seriously injured veterans' annual minimum income. That amount has increased to $58,000 per year. The eligibility criteria for monthly supplementary allowances have been made more flexible, creating a new monthly supplement. Such improvements also allow for new payment methods for the disability payments received by veterans, which was previously called the lump sum. Those improved payments total over $2 billion per year during the lifetime of the program and ensure that vulnerable and seriously injured veterans receive the financial assistance and support they require, at the right time, for as long as necessary.
With respect to mental health services, Veterans Affairs has a wide range of services and benefits for veterans, Canadian armed forces personnel, RCMP members, and the families of those living with a mental health condition. We have the operational stress injury clinics, the Canadian armed forces operational and trauma stress support centres, the chronic pain management clinics, specialized community in-patient treatment, community mental health services providers, clinical care managers, the operational stress injuries social support program, and a 24-hour toll-free VAC assistance service. We also have a number of partnerships to enhance capacity to assist veterans.
I remind you that the Veterans Affairs Canada OSI clinic locations are Fredericton, New Brunswick; Loretteville, Quebec; and Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, Quebec. We also have the residential treatment clinics for operational stress injuries in Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, Quebec; Ottawa, Ontario; London, Ontario; Winnipeg, Manitoba; Edmonton, Alberta; Calgary, Alberta; and Vancouver, British Columbia.
The veterans transition program works with the University of British Columbia to provide support for veterans during the transition.
I mentioned that we have a network of community mental health service providers. We have over 4,000 providers in the community. We also have the chronic pain management clinic that is available for veterans.
Our core business at the department is case management. We have a number of case managers throughout the country located in various offices to provide case management services for any veterans and their families who would require such services. They are there for veterans and their families who have complex needs, especially those with serious injuries or illnesses. As of December 2012, we had approximately 7,200 case-managed veterans across the country. The core case management functions, in case you are wondering, include engagement, assessment, analysis of the need, case planning, consultation, monitoring, and evaluation.
We also provide transition services. These services are offered to members who are about to be released from the Canadian Forces. We provide a transition interview to determine whether needs associated with the person's release could hinder their transition to civilian life. In the case of members about to be released and their families, we work in collaboration with Canadian armed forces personnel.
Between April 1 and December 31, 2012, Veterans Affairs Canada conducted 3,179 transition interviews. We have also created additional programs and partner with groups to facilitate a veteran's transition into civilian life. Some examples are the Helmets to Hardhats program,
which is Helmets to Hardhats,
the Hire a Veteran program, which was implemented in December 2012, and the Prince of Wales' Operation Entrepreneur.
This is the Prince's Charities organization, which provides support to veterans seeking self-employment, who wish to start up their own business. It's a potential source of funding. There is also coaching and training to set up their own business.
We also offer levels of appeal for a veteran who is not satisfied with a decision by the department regarding his disability. The next charts describe the various levels and a mechanism that's available for a veteran to appeal his or her decision.
Regarding points of service, Veterans Affairs Canada has approximately 1,800 people spread among more than 60 locations across the country, in addition to the head office in Charlottetown. We have a network of interdisciplinary client service teams at area offices across the country. We also have more than 100 staff who work on bases, what we call integrated personnel support centres, located on or near the 24 Canadian Forces bases and wings. Veterans and families can also reach us through the toll-free line in both English and French, through the My VAC Account, and also through our website. The users of My VAC Account can update their address, phone, e-mail, and direct-deposit information. They can fill out and submit a disability benefit application. They can track the status of the disability benefit application. They can also fill out and submit a request for reimbursement for health-related travel. They can track their documentation. They can also view their Veterans Affairs Canada benefit, and they can communicate securely with the department.
Looking forward now, we continue to modernize our service delivery in order to cut red tape when it comes to accessing our programs and services. Our focus is on improved, faster and more efficient service to our veterans and their families. We continue to reduce complexity of access to our programs and services by offering more one-stop services, as well as more online options to access information and services. We have also improved our wait times in terms of processing applications for benefits and services. We continue to establish and maintain strong partnerships with DND, the Canadian Forces and other stakeholders to provide and improve service delivery to veterans.
With respect to other points of service and where to get assistance, in addition to Veterans Affairs area office staff, there are other organizations and partners that are ready and willing to help veterans and their families to apply for VAC benefits at no cost.
The Bureau of Pensions Advocates will represent, free of charge, any veteran who would like to appeal a pension or a disability decision with the tribunal. They are available at a number of locations throughout Canada. They also have a toll-free line where they can be reached.
We also have local veterans organizations, such as the Royal Canadian Legion, that offer services at their various branches. We provide training for the service officers on how to fill out applications and assist veterans in applying for benefits and services.
We also have a partnership with Service Canada, which offers assistance with accessing our services and programs throughout their 600 points of service across the country.
There is another part of the mandate of Veterans Affairs Canada. Not only does it provide services and benefits for veterans, but it also includes commemorating the contributions and sacrifices of our veterans.
The Canada remembers program endeavours to keep alive the achievements and sacrifices made by those who served Canada in times of war, military conflict, and peace, and to promote an understanding of the significance of those efforts in Canadian life as we know it today. We also have the maintenance of the government's memorials and cemetery program. We have the community engagement partnership fund. So far we have 128 projects approved with a total funding of more than $1 million. In addition, we have the cenotaph and monument restoration program, through which we have approved 55 projects for a total of $409,000. We have the community war memorial program, where we have approved 16 projects for a total of almost $573,000.
The recent budget announced $65 million over two years to enhance the funeral and burial program. The plan for this investment is to simplify the program for veterans' estates. As well, it has more than doubled the funeral service reimbursement rate, from $3,600 to $7,376.
We also support national and international ceremonies and events for commemoration. We also develop material for the promotion of learning opportunities, educational material, and public information regarding commemoration.
Regarding the outcomes of some of the programs, Canadians' attitudes toward veterans remain strongly positive. Virtually 91% believe that Canada's veterans should be recognized for their service to Canada. There is also widespread acknowledgement that Canada's veterans have made major contributions to the development of our country. A large majority of Canadians, 84%, consider Veterans' Week to be important, with 64% saying that they consider it to be very important. Approximately 76% of Canadians said they participated in Veterans' Week in 2012. This rate of participation is slightly higher than the rate in 2011, which was 73%.
We also have the wreaths for parliamentarians program, which provides wreaths to parliamentarians who represent the Government of Canada by laying commemorative wreaths during Remembrance Day ceremonies in their constituencies. The wreaths can be ordered from September to November by calling a 1-800 number.
We also make 10 Canadian flags available to members of Parliament for the sole purpose of providing a flag to families of veterans who have passed away. The flags can be ordered by contacting Canadian Heritage.
As I mentioned earlier, the commemorative wreaths program is also available to parliamentarians. Please do not hesitate to make use of it. Wreaths can be ordered from September to November. All you have to do is contact the Department of Veterans Affairs at the toll free number on the screen.
That concludes my presentation. We would be pleased to answer any questions.
Derek Sullivan
View Derek Sullivan Profile
Derek Sullivan
2012-05-15 15:51
Thank you.
While clearly the Government of Canada has a leadership role to play in remembrance, remembrance is not just about ceremonies or events that are organized by the federal government. It is actually about Canadians themselves paying tribute to those who have served Canada and those who continue to serve Canada. Therefore, our focus in Veterans Affairs is on how we can engage and encourage Canadians to honour those who have served.
What we want to do is bring remembrance to Canadians rather than try to drag Canadians to remembrance. What we want to do is take it to where Canadians live, where they work, where they play, and make it a part of their everyday lives—not something you do just on November 11, or on June 6, or on April 9, but something you do every day.
As a result, we partner with a lot of organizations and other levels of government both in Canada and internationally, but particularly with community groups across the country so that remembrance is happening at the community level across Canada.
One example of how we do this is through our partnerships with sports organizations, both professional sports and also amateur sports across the country.
One of our partnerships, quite a natural one, is with the Canadian Football League. We have been working with them since 2007 to have pre-game veteran tributes at playoff games in eastern and western Canada. As well, with them, a couple of years ago we created a new individual player award in the CFL, an award given to a Canadian player who best exemplifies the attributes of a veteran: perseverance, courage, strength, comradeship, and contribution to community. This is an increasingly prized individual award among CFL players.
We also have partnerships with the National Hockey League and the junior hockey leagues right across Canada, as well as with midget AAA, and more recently with the Canadian Interuniversity Sport organization. Again, they hold in various ways tributes to veterans associated with the games that are played across the country. In this way, we are able to reach with remembrance a much broader range of Canadians than you might traditionally see at a remembrance ceremony.
As well, we've had a partnership for quite a number of years with the Royal Canadian Legion track and field championships. About 80% of the national team in track and field that goes to the Olympics has gone through this Royal Canadian Legion program.
In Veterans Affairs we have three programs where we can provide, in addition to the advice and collaboration with communities, funding to some remembrance activities at the community level in particular. We have two programs that support the restoration, in one case, and the construction of cenotaphs and monuments at the community level.
The third one is the community engagement partnership fund, where we're able to provide community groups, not-for-profit groups, with funding to undertake remembrance activities, whether they be ceremonies or learning events for youth across the country in a wide variety of remembrance activities. They're at the national level as well, where we fund, for example, the Historica-Dominion Institute memory project, where they have a speakers bureau with over 2,000 veterans who are available to go into schools across the country and talk to Canadian students about their experiences and why remembrance is important to them.
We also support the Juno Beach Centre in France, which is really Canada's face of remembrance of the Second World War in Europe.
Thank you.
View Peter Stoffer Profile
NDP (NS)
Senator, thank you very much for coming, and thank you for mentioning that No. 2 Construction Battalion has a ceremony every year in Pictou that is quite moving.
Sir, I have one question for you. You may have noticed that as you come from the Chateau Laurier toward the national cenotaph there are 15 busts of our heroes who served right from the beginning of 1812 and onwards--and even before that. But there is one missing: that of William Hall, Canada's first VC black naval person back in 1850. I have asked repeatedly that a bust be put up in his honour to recognize not just William Hall and the VC, but all black Nova Scotians and black Canadians who have served in our armed forces, but I have been turned down so far.
I am wondering if I can leave with you that I would like to meet you at a possible date to see where can move forward on that, because I believe that is a significant error. I don't think anyone did it on purpose. It was just an oversight, and it would pay great tribute to exactly what you are trying to do here today.
Don Meredith
View Don Meredith Profile
Hon. Don Meredith
2011-10-04 8:56
Thank you so much. I absolutely agree with you.
Just a couple of weekends ago I was in Nova Scotia recognizing the Africville institution that took place there--the commemorative church that has now been erected in Africville. There was also mention that there were 29 countries from the African diaspora heritage trail that came together in Nova Scotia to discuss the heritage.
I believe it is a crying shame that we haven't recognized those who made contributions to this country pre-Confederation. It is important that we continue to do so, especially for our young people, so they get a sense of what this country is about--we recognize, and they served.
Mr. Daniel and I were at a ceremony recognizing the Korean War. We had individuals of African descent who served in that war. I recognize that it has been a long time and it's a long haul, but it's something worth championing. I certainly will support you, honourable member.
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