Answer YES on the Canada 2006 Census

[Slusarchuk-Zilinsky]

The next National Census of Canada is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, 16 May 2006. For the first time in the 340 years Censuses have been conducted in the territory that was destined to become Canada, respondents will be asked to provide consent for the release of information they provide, 92 years after collection. Until now, no such consent was required. The question that will appear on the Census questionnaire is as follows:

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The following question is for all persons who usually live here including those less than 15 years old. If you are answering on behalf of other people, please consult each person.

53. The Statistics Act guarantees the confidentiality of your census
information. Only if you mark "YES" to this question will your personal
information be made public, 92 years after the 2006 Census. If you mark
"NO" or leave the answer blank, your personal information will never be
made publicly available.

Does this person agree to make his/her 2006 Census information available
for public release in 2098 (92 years after the census)?


Yes
No

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There is no recorded instance of a Canadian complaining about their basic personal information being publicly available in the census records of the country. The information disclosed is only that which appears on the short form of the census: name, gender, residence, occupation, birth date and place, family relationships and the like. There never was disclosure of the rest of the long form questions about health, sexual orientation or economic status. No other democratic country has such an "informed consent" question, all other democratic countries make these census records available to their public after some time period, and in some of these countries the time period is even shorter than our own 92 years. The laws of Canada have always permitted this disclosure, so this new question should not have been necessary. There were town hall meetings, government panels, study groups, advisors ... all consulted on the issue, and almost unanimously they declared this was unnecessary, but Statistics Canada has done it anyway.

Now that the question is being posed, and the assumed answer is "NO" if you say nothing, it is important that we all ask Canadians to participate fully in this democratic process, and to understand the cost / benefit. Statistics Canada has committed to publicly ask the country to pick "YES", but perhaps just this first time we can help them achieve that objective. The goal of 100% of Canadians answering "YES" is probably not achievable. Those who say "NO" or who skip the question will, effectively, cease to exist as far as their descendants are concerned. In 2098, their great-great grand children will look for record of them but find nothing and have no recourse. The loss to genealogists and historical researchers will be significant.

The purpose of this note is to ask you to answer "YES" to the "informed consent" question. Please pass the word along by likewise advising your friends, relatives and neighbours. If significant numbers of respondents answer negatively, or do not answer this question at all, it will destroy the completeness of the records, and thus their value to genealogical or historical researchers. One might think that all genealogists are aware of the value of Census in developing their family trees. You might think that after a seven year campaign to maintain public access to Historic Census records they would be aware that starting with the 2006 Census on 16 May, they must respond positively to an "informed consent" question to earn their place in the history of the country. Sadly it seems that many of those who use the Census in their genealogical research today are not aware of this. The general public's knowledge of the issue is probably non-existent. The measures proposed by Statistics Canada to encourage a "YES" response are unlikely to reach enough of the population.

On Census Day 16 May 2006, make sure you answer "YES" to allow your information to be made available to your descendants in 2098. Please forward this note with your endorsement and help make sure everyone you know will also answer "YES".

[MbUke]

Of course I will say YES

The privacy laws in our country are getting frickin' assinine. Pretty soon we'll have to sign a 'release' just to go to the bathroom....

[XeniaUkraina]

ROTFL!!

Why should Stats Canada even need to get involved with that? 92 years after the census, most of us will not even be here!

I'll vote 'yes' as a concerned genealogist.