Citizens for a Canadian Republic (

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

: ''Citoyens pour une République Canadienne'') (CCR) is a Canadian advocacy group founded in 2002 that advocates for the replacement of the Canadian monarchy with a

head of state A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...

who could either be chosen directly through a general election, indirectly by the

Parliament of Canada The Parliament of Canada (french: Parlement du Canada) is the federal legislature of Canada, seated at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, and is composed of three parts: the King, the Senate, and the House of Commons. By constitutional convention, the ...

, the Legislative assemblies of Canadian provinces and territories, or some other electoral body. CCR favours the retention of the Westminster-style parliament, with the prime minister as

head of government The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, a gro ...

, in a parliamentary republic similar to

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. It does not endorse any particular selection process, other than it should be democratic. The organization's general objective is "to promote replacing the British monarch as our

with a resident, democratically-selected Canadian. "

History

Founding

Citizens for a Canadian Republic was formed in 2002 "in an effort to provide balance in the debate over whether or not Canada should remain a constitutional monarchy" and to advocate for the "Canadianization" of the head of state. It remains the only formal organization devoted to the establishment of a Canadian republic.

O'Donohue v. Canada

That same year, CCR became involved in ''

O'Donohue v. Canada ''O'Donohue v Canada'' was a legal challenge to the exclusion of Roman Catholics from the throne of Canada. The applicant sought a declaratory judgment that certain provisions of the Act of Settlement 1701 violate the equality-rights section of t ...

'', a lawsuit filed by one of its members, Tony O'Donohue. This suit challenged the constitutionality of certain provisions of the ''

Act of Settlement, 1701 The Act of Settlement is an Acts of the Parliament of England, Act of the Parliament of England that settled the order of succession, succession to the English Monarchs, English and List of Irish monarchs, Irish crowns to only Protestants, whic ...

'', one of the laws governing succession to the Canadian throne, which disallows the sovereign from either being or being married to a Roman Catholic. O'Donohue argued that it thus violates the ''

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms The ''Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms'' (french: Charte canadienne des droits et libertés), often simply referred to as the ''Charter'' in Canada, is a bill of rights entrenched in the Constitution of Canada, forming the first part o ...

''. The case was dismissed in 2003, a ruling that was upheld in 2005, part of the rationale behind the decision being that, as the Act of Settlement is a constitutional document on equal-footing with the ''Charter'', it could not be pre-empted by the ''Charter''.

Oath of Allegiance

The co-founder of CCR, Pierre L. J. Vincent, became a republican activist in 1998 when he objected to taking the ''

Oath of Allegiance An oath of allegiance is an oath whereby a subject or citizen acknowledges a duty of allegiance and swears loyalty to a monarch or a country. In modern republics, oaths are sworn to the country in general, or to the country's constitution. For ...

'', then required by law for all Canadian public servants beginning employment within the Civil Service. His refusal, partly based on his

Acadian The Acadians (french: Acadiens , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Most Acadians live in the region of Acadia, as it is the region where the de ...

ancestry, sparked a publicized three-year legal battle involving the Government of Canada's Public Service Commission. In 2001, the commission ruled that he could keep his job, a legal precedent that was later applied to a similar oath refusal. Both cases are recognized as being a major impetus for the 2003 ''Public Service Modernization Act'', which ended the requirement for Government of Canada civil servants to swear an oath to the Queen as of December 31, 2005. In 2007, former CCR member

Charles Roach Charles Conliff Mende Roach (September 18, 1933 – October 2, 2012) was a Canadian civil rights lawyer and an activist in the Black community in Toronto. Early life Born in Belmont, Trinidad and Tobago, the son of a trade union organizer, ...

filed suit - A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil actio ...

in opposition to the requirement of new citizens to swear an oath to the Queen. The case was on May 17, 2007, allowed to proceed, but has since been dismissed by the

Ontario Superior Court of Justice The Superior Court of Justice (French: ''Cour supérieure de justice'') is a superior court in Ontario. The Court sits in 52 locations across the province, including 17 Family Court locations, and consists of over 300 federally appointed judges. ...

Organization and structure

CCR's national director and principal anglophone spokesperson is Tom Freda. Associate director and principal

francophone French became an international language in the Middle Ages, when the power of the Kingdom of France made it the second international language, alongside Latin. This status continued to grow into the 18th century, by which time French was the l ...

and

Western Canada Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces, Canadian West or the Western provinces of Canada, and commonly known within Canada as the West, is a Canadian region that includes the four western provinces just north of the Canada� ...

spokesperson is

Pierre L. J. Vincent Citizens for a Canadian Republic ( French: ''Citoyens pour une République Canadienne'') (CCR) is a Canadian advocacy group founded in 2002 that advocates for the replacement of the Canadian monarchy with a head of state who could either be chos ...

. Associate Director

Jamie Bradley Jamie is a unisex name. It is a diminutive form of James or, more rarely, other names. It is also given as a name in its own right. People Female * Jamie Anne Allman (born 1977), American actress * Jamie Babbit (born 1970), American film and t ...

is the principal Atlantic Canada spokesperson. Other prominent members of the group's Advisory Committee include Governor General's Award-winning author, journalist, historian and political commentator Christopher Moore and

Brigadier-General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

James S. Cox, OMM, CD, Ph.D. (Retired), a 35-year veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces and former parliamentary advisor.

References

External links

Citizens for a Canadian Republic websiteCitizens for a Canadian Republic
on

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Citizens for a Canadian Republic
on

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Citizens For A Canadian Republic Political advocacy groups in Canada Republicanism in Canada Republican organizations 2002 establishments in Ontario