Becoming Canadian: Citizenship

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Transcript: “Becoming Canadian: Citizenship”

Video length: 2:04 minutes

Light intro music plays.

A globe spins as small square images of people fade in and out around it. Global cities, identified by small squares, are connected by lines.

A map of the world appears.

Text displays: “Becoming Canadian”

Images of people as a film strip appear under the text.

Screen fades into an old historic courthouse.

Text displays: “Citizenship” - Kingston, Ontario.

A small world map appears to the left of the text.

Two women standing in a hall smile as they walk into a room filled with seated people. The people stand as the women enter and walk up the centre aisle towards the front of the room.

SUZANNE PINEL: “It’s a great day to meet new citizens.”

NARRATOR: Citizenship Judge Suzanne Pinel loves her work.

A female judge walks down the aisle carrying paperwork. A man walks behind her.

She sits behind a desk at the head of the room, against a backdrop of several Canadian provincial and territorial flags, and speaks through a microphone to the crowd.

NARRATOR: She is once again adding new members to the Canadian family. Each year, courts like this see a quarter of a million immigrants become new Canadians.

There are various shots of people and groups in the crowd.

A montage shows various angles of the crowd. The people in the crowd hold booklets and stand as they take the oath with their right hands raised.

Text displays: “Taking the Oath of Citizenship is the culmination of a three-year journey for these newcomers. Visit Canada.ca for up-to-date citizenship information and legislative changes.”

NARRATOR: Taking the Oath of Citizenship is the culmination of a three-year journey for these newcomers. They’ve undergone security and health checks.

Text disappears.

A background montage shows Canadian scenery with images from the ocean on the East Coast to the Rocky Mountains on the West Coast. Images of several smiling people from diverse backgrounds fade in and out of the foreground.

NARRATOR: They were required to learn about Canada’s geography and history; its languages and of the rights and responsibilities of being a citizen.

A seated judge speaks.

Text displays: “Suzanne Pinel - Citizenship Judge”

SUZANNE PINEL: “We are there with different programs to help them settle and also ways of really belonging. And maybe helping them to take the strengths that they have, so that they will succeed.”

A woman sits behind a desk in a large room. The word “IMMIGRATION” is written on the front of the desk. There is a sign that reads “Welcome to Canada” in several languages on the wall behind her.

NARRATOR: Canada has a great tradition of welcoming immigrants and refugees.

An old black and white photo of a historic building with a “Welcome home to Canada” sign on the exterior wall fades into an image of a large boat filled with people. A bright red warehouse with a Pier 21 sign on the front of it appears.

NARRATOR: For more than a hundred years, waves of them have arrived here to forge a new life.

Text displays: “Halifax, Nova Scotia”

A museum exhibit appears.

NARRATOR: Many, through Pier 21 in Halifax—the last remaining ocean immigration terminal—now a national historic site.

A montage shows artifacts, passports and old photos of historic events.

NARRATOR: In the early 1900’s, the vast majority of immigrants came from Europe.

A Canadian flag waves in the background as faces of people from diverse backgrounds fade in and out of the foreground.

NARRATOR: By the end of the century, there was a shift of newcomers—largely from Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

A man walks down an urban sidewalk.

NARRATOR: Carlos Kassoma escaped war in Angola to come to Canada.

Text displays: “Carlos Kassoma - Citizen”

The man speaks while standing on the sidewalk.

CARLOS KASSOMA: “I feel very proud that I got accepted, and I feel very proud and very safe in this country.”

Children on a stage wave Canadian flags as a woman sings the Canadian national anthem into a microphone.

People in the room stand, wave their Canadian flags and sing along.

NARRATOR: New citizens. Ready to help build a stronger Canada. To learn more, please visit cic.gc.ca.

A map of the world appears in the background.

Text displays: “cic.gc.ca”.

Fade to black.

The Citizenship and Immigration Canada corporate signature and the copyright message “Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, represented by Citizenship and Immigration Canada, 2018” displays, followed by the Canada wordmark.

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