THUNDER BAY — Pride, awareness, and capturing a certain feeling that can’t be experienced over a computer screen are several reasons why a Thunder Bay woman says she wants to see in-person citizenship ceremonies return to the city.
Julie Hutka started a change.org petition to raise awareness.
Hutka said that a member of her family is scheduled to take the oath of citizenship later this year, and that it’s special when relatives can all be in the same public space together on such a momentous day. She recalls many years ago when her mother got her citizenship and how special an occasion that was, recalling “the pride that she had in becoming a Canadian.”
"To mark such a momentous occasion over a computer screen feels, to me, somewhat removed from the gravity and glory of the event," reads the information about Hutka's online petition. "The joy of becoming a citizen of a country is not just about obtaining legal status, it's about the ceremonial act of taking an oath, the shared experience of doing so alongside others from different backgrounds who have similarly chosen to make Canada their home."
The ceremonies—where new Canadians take the oath of citizenship, which is the final step to becoming a Canadian citizen—are mostly being done virtually these days, according to the Government of Canada website. The site shows that, in Ontario, in-person ceremonies are currently being held only in Kitchener, Hamilton, Ottawa, Scarborough, and Mississauga, although it cautions that the list of ceremonies isn’t a complete one.
“The citizenship ceremonies are being done in person in southern Ontario and I’d like to see that reinstated in this area,” Hutka told Newswatch in an interview. “It’s a huge step in becoming a Canadian, and I feel that it’s very difficult for a person to take pride in that moment if we as a country aren’t providing the same pride.”
“I think that there's an awareness … and a ceremonial aspect that can only be done in person, and over a computer screen, you’re losing that connectivity.”
Prior to moving online, citizenship ceremonies were conducted in various locations around Thunder Bay, such as the Lakehead University Bora Laskin Faculty of Law building, Fort William Historical Park, Confederation College, and others.
Aside from the online petition, Hutka said she’s also reached out to Thunder Bay’s two MPs, and said that a representative from Thunder Bay-Superior North MP Patty Hajdu’s office said they’d pass Hutka’s concerns along.
And while she’s contacted federal representatives about her concerns, Hutka said that getting the word out at the grassroots level is important too.
“I would like to rally some community support for motivating that to happen.”
