Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Canada Gets New Governor General
Although I was sad to see Adrienne Clarkson leave the post of Governor General for Canada, I was thrilled to find out who her replacement would be. I don't know Madam Jean well, but she represents a symbol to the people in this country who value equality and freedom.Her inauguration took place today in Ottawa...
"TORONTO (AP) - Queen Elizabeth II's new representative in Canada, a refugee from Haiti, was sworn in Tuesday as the nation's 27th governor general in a ceremony steeped in British tradition and Canadian color.
Michaelle Jean is the first black person and only the third woman to hold the largely ceremonial post as head of state, designed to defend Canada's sovereignty and promote its national identity.
The 48-year-old journalist and documentary filmmaker, whose family fled dictatorship in Haiti when she was 11, is among the youngest to hold the office."
For those of you who are not Canadian, I think the Governor General's job is to represent Canada internationally - in a non political way... as well as to promote unity and Canadian identity within Canada.
If you haven't seen Rideau Hall, the residence for the Governor General, it's pretty cool. It is a huge mansion (aka palace) located on dozens of acres of property in the richest neighbourhood in town. They even have cermonial guards there, like the ones at Buckingham palace. There are riding stables, an ice rink, a huge park and much more. The new governor general has a 7 year old daughter... imagine what her new life is going to be like. I think we will have a new little princess in Ottawa!
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I'm keeping an open mind about Madame Jean but she's got a lot of work to do to clean up the GG's image. A lot of people are upset with the amount of money Adrienne Clarkson spent during her 5 year tenure, I admit I'm one of them.
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