For
Immediate Release
December 8, 2004
Enshrine
Marriage Canada Seeks to Protect Marriage
Toronto -“Canadians should refuse to acknowledge the moral validity of any
law that attempts to redefine marriage. Instead, they should enshrine the
historic definition of marriage as the
union of one man and one woman in Canada’s Constitution,” said William
Gairdner, PhD, Chairman of the Steering Committee and Chief Spokesperson for the
newly created ENSHRINE MARRIAGE CANADA (EMC).
Today
Gairdner, a former Olympic athlete, retired businessman and accomplished author
joined four other prominent Canadians - Rabbi David Novak, Douglas Farrow,
Richard Bastien and Susan Martinuk - to launch EMC as a campaign to amend
Canada’s constitution to protect the historic definition of marriage.
The
Government of Canada has indicated its intention to change the historic
definition of marriage from “the union of one man and one woman” to “the
union of two persons.” Justice Minister Irwin Cotler has referred the issue to
the Supreme Court of Canada and a decision is expected tomorrow.
EMC
Steering Committee member, University of Toronto Professor David Novak, urged
Canadians to take action in defense of marriage in the face of attempts to
destroy “an ancient institution that has served women, men, and children since
the beginning of human civilization”.
“The
Canadian people have never called for alteration of their most important social
institution,” said Steering Committee member Douglas Farrow, McGill University
Professor, and co-editor of the recently published book Divorcing Marriage (McGill-Queen’s University Press).
Richard
Bastien, EMC Steering Committee member and founding member of the Quebec journal
Égards, said, “When governments
seek such change because of court decisions, they are abdicating their
responsibilities as elected representatives”.
“There
needs to be a public debate of this issue,” said EMC Steering Committee member
Susan Martinuk, well-known Vancouver freelance columnist and speaker.
“That debate has not occurred, and governments seem determined, by
deferring to unelected courts, to prevent its occurring.”
Opinion
polling has shown Canadians don’t want to change marriage. EMC Chairman
Gairdner said “Canadians obviously believe marriage is an institution that
must be strengthened and protected. To
ensure this happens, we need to act now.”
To
contact EMC or William Gairdner: 416-533-5124
A backgrounder is available
Enshrine
Marriage Canada
Backgrounder
December
8, 2004
What
is EMC?
EMC
is a not-for-profit, non-partisan, secular organization with a single objective:
to coordinate a national campaign to enshrine the traditional legal definition
of marriage in the Canadian Constitution. When
that campaign is successful, EMC’s mission will be completed.
The
Problem
Marriage,
as the union of one man and one woman, is an institution of the most profound
importance for society and indeed for civilization itself, because it bridges
the divide between the sexes and provides a secure environment for the
procreation and protection of children.
But
in Canada the institution of marriage is under attack. The imposition of
“same-sex marriage” by provincial courts in many Canadian provinces has
deepened the crisis that already faces traditional marriage.
Instead of defending the institution of marriage, however, federal and
provincial governments have opted to cede much of their responsibility to the
courts. This course subverts
parliamentary supremacy and contravenes the will of the majority of Canadians.
The
courts have asked that marriage be redefined as “a union of two persons.”
This loose definition fails to recognize some of the most important
features of the institution of marriage, thereby rendering the term meaningless.
Under the new definition, marriage in Canada will no longer be specifically
directed, so far as law and public policy are concerned, to the welfare of
children.
The
Solution
EMC
recognizes and celebrates the essential role marriage has played and continues
to play in civilizations around the world, and deeply laments all recent
attempts to undermine it.
This
fundamental social institution precedes all states, all courts, and all
governments, and cannot rightfully be subjected to such alterations as the
Government of Canada now proposes to make. EMC was created with one purpose in
mind: to halt the continued erosion of marriage by enshrining in our
Constitution the definition that is already implicit there, the definition
Canadians have always taken for granted. Namely:
Marriage
is a union of one man and one woman.
While
enshrining this definition of marriage will not guarantee a full renewal of
Canada’s marriage culture, it is a necessary starting point. It will guarantee
the right of Canadians to work together in building a society that affirms the
husband-wife-child relationship as the basic building block of civilization.
This is in the best interests of all Canadians, including those who
choose a mode of life other than marriage.
EMC invites all citizens to join in this effort to defend marriage.
For
more information, or should you wish to contribute to the Enshrine Marriage
Canada campaign, contact us at Enshrine Marriage Canada, PO Box 59039, Toronto,
Ontario, M6R 3B5, tel: 416-533-5124, fax: 416-533-0703.
Biographies
of EMC Steering Committee Members
December
8, 2004
William
Gairdner
William
Gairdner has been a Professor of English Literature at York University, a
successful businessman, and an Olympic athlete. He is the author of eight books,
including The Trouble With Canada
(1990), The War Against The Family
(1993), and Constitutional Crack-up
(1994). He was also the managing editor of a landmark historical book, Canada’s
Founding Debates (1999). His
most recent work is entitled The Trouble
with Democracy (2001).
David
Novak
David
Novak holds the J. Richard and Dorothy Shiff Chair of Jewish Studies, as
Professor of the Study of Religion and Professor of Philosophy at the University
of Toronto. He is a member of University College and of the Joint Centre for
Bioethics. A Fellow of the American Academy for Jewish
Research and the Academy for Jewish Philosophy, he has also served on the
International Advisory Board convened by the Government of Poland for the future
of the Auschwitz-Birkenau site. David Novak is the author of many books,
including The Election of Israel: The Idea
of the Chosen People, Natural Law in Judaism and its sequel, Covenantal Rights.
Douglas
Farrow
Douglas
Farrow is Associate Professor of Christian Thought at McGill University.
He taught formerly in the UK at King’s College, University of London.
He is a frequent contributor to Canadian newspapers as well as to
scholarly journals, and is author or editor of several books, including most
recently Divorcing Marriage: Unveiling the
Dangers in Canada’s New Social Experiment (2004), and Recognizing Religion in a Secular Society: Essays in Pluralism, Religion
and Public Policy (2004).
Susan
Martinuk
Susan Martinuk is
a Vancouver-based freelance columnist and speaker on public policy issues and
current affairs. Her weekly column has appeared on The Province’s editorial pages for the past eight years. She
hosted a Vancouver talk-radio show for five years and has contributed to the National
Post, the Ottawa Citizen, the Calgary
Herald and Reader’s Digest.
Richard
Bastien
Richard
Bastien spent over thirty years in public service for the Government of Canada,
most of that time with the Department of Finance. He consults nationally and
internationally on economic matters, and helped to establish the new Quebec
quarterly journal of cultural criticism entitled Égards.