Tom Freda
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| Tom Freda | |
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| Born | 1956 Halifax Nova Scotia, Canada |
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| Residence | Canada |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Education | Sheridan College Institute and Ryerson University |
| Title | National Director of Citizens for a Canadian Republic[1] |
| Known for | co-founder of Citizens for a Canadian Republic[1] |
Thomas Freda (Born 1956) is a co-founder and current national director of Toronto, Ontario-based Citizens for a Canadian Republic (CCR).[1] CCR is a non-profit, non-partisan organization representing the Republicanism in Canada movement. He is the main Anglophone media spokesperson for the group.[2]
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[edit] Personal life
Freda, who is married with a school-age son, is a grand-nephew of Robert Winters, who served as a Cabinet Minister under Prime Ministers Louis St. Laurent and Lester Pearson.[3]
A native of Nova Scotia, he was born in Halifax and relocated with his family to Bridgewater in 1961. In 1977, he moved to Toronto to study at Sheridan College and Ryerson University. He remained in the city and now works in the fields of advertising, marketing, design and photography.[3]
[edit] Canadian republicanism
Freda's involvement with Canadian republicanism began in 1997 when, as an Internet activist he established the websites, Republic of Canada Online and Monarchy-FreeCanada.org, which were instrumental in uniting republicans to form Citizens for a Canadian Republic in 2002.
| “ | I believe [the monarchy] is a limiting factor on our national identity and one of the reasons why the question of what it means to be a Canadian continues to be an issue. The British monarchy’s entrenchment in our constitution is the last thread of colonialism and its removal will be among the final steps in our evolution as a nation. -- Tom Freda, 2005[4] |
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According to political science author Randall White in his 2001 book Is Canada Trapped in a Time Warp? Political Symbols in the Age of the Internet, these sites indicated "the earliest beginnings of a popular Canadian republican movement are blowing gently in the wind."[5]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Citizens for a Canadian Republic: Press Release; October 10, 2002
- ^ Boutet, Chris; National Post: Majority of Canadians want to ditch monarchy: poll; October 1, 2007
- ^ a b Citizens for a Canadian Republic: National Director
- ^ Speech to Canadian Ethnic Media Association 6 Oct 2005
- ^ White, Randall (PhD); Is Canada Trapped in a Time Warp? Political Symbols in the Age of the Internet; Toronto: Eastend Books, 2001; p. 112; ISBN 1896973248
[edit] External links
- Citizens for a Canadian Republic website
- Canadians support breaking with monarchy:poll CTV News
- The fight for the Republic of Canada
- CTV Question Period: Constitutional debate about the Monarchy 9:27 Tom Freda and University of Saskatchewan Professor David E. Smith (click on right side link)
