Us and Them: The Plumbing and Poetry of Citizenship Policy and the Canadians Abroad

Abstract:

This paper illustrates how the Canadian population living abroad, now numbering nearly 2.8 million people, has important implications for the development of Canadian citizenship policy. The paper traces the evolution of citizenship policy from its earliest days. Following official timelines from government sources, the paper is divided into four periods: 1867 – 1947; 1947 – 1977; 1977 – 2009; and 2009 onwards.