----- Original Message ----- From: Muriel M. Davidson <Farquhar@netcom.ca> Sent: Saturday, 04 September, 1999 4:25 PM Subject: Let's Help GEORGE - and Ourselves!!! > For release > ------------- > To all: > There is an old saying: "Let George do it" -- but read the following > letter from a Canadian living where his work requires -- hopefully, we > will be able to change the saying to "Let's HELP George and ourselves". > > I will gladly answer queries from both sides of the border - Canadians > send your letters DIRECT - Free Postage. Non-Canadians may send to my > address. > > I hope to hear from many, > Muriel M. Davidson <Farquhar@netcom.ca> > > September 1, 1999 > > The Honourable Lorna Milne > Senate of Canada > Parliament Buildings > Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A4 > > Dear Senator Milne, > > I am writing to you to voice my support for opening the post-1901 > Canadian census records. As a Canadian citizen living in the U.S.A., I > do not have an MP to whom I can write and express my opinion. I am told > that you welcome letters from outside the country on this important > subject. > > As a professional genealogist, I live in New England and work in Boston > at the New England Historic Genealogical Society where I am the Canadian > specialist. I have led genealogical research tours for the Society to > different parts of Canada; authored and edited books on Canadian > research; and lectured all over North America on Canadian genealogical > research. I cannot stress to you strongly enough how important it is to > both our countries to have these records open to family historians and > to > scholars alike. I find the emphasis on confidentiality to be very > bizarre, especially when we are dealing with quite innocuous information > concerning people long gone. There is not much point to any > government's gathering information about its people if its people cannot > see and use it. > > Of the more than 18,000 members of the genealogical society where I > work, a very high percentage have Canadians roots and connections and > come to our library - a major centre for Canadian genealogical research > - to do as much research as they can there prior to travelling to Canada > on holiday or on research trips. Inability to identify places of origin > of their families would, and does, cause them great frustration and > often they cancel their plans to go to Canada to look up relatives or do > more research, thus affecting tourism and all that that implies. It > also, of course, causes a breakdown in communications and leads to a > lack of understanding between peoples, so important to our two > countries and our family historians. > > There are many reasons why access to the census records are important - > as many reasons as there are people who may want to use them. The idea > that Government can keep this data and not allow access to it is oddly > paternalistic, bordering on fascist. > > Canada has been called the best place in the world to live, and our > government one of the most responsive to its citizens' wishes. Now is > not the time to allow bureaucrats to horde information about our > families to which we have a moral right of access even if, at the > moment, we do not have a legal right of access. I am sure we can count > on you and other fair-minded Members to persuade Government to do the > right thing. > > With every good wish, I am > > George F. Sanborn > 24 Thornton Street > Derry, New Hampshire 03038-1628 > U.S.A. > (tax-payer of Hartsville, Prince Edward Island) > <melinde-and-george@mediaone.net> > CC: The Hon. John Manley and elected PEI Members of Parliament >