Thoughts about retiring...

People ask me what I intend to do when I "retire."

I'll do a lot more reading and writing; Fish more often; go for more walks in the woods and take lots of pictures of everything and do some sailing on my Columbia T-23, the "Afternoon Delight." Probably take a trip to Cuba.

One thing that I am going to do for sure is open up a fight to rescind the deportation order the Canadian government unjustly imposed upon me, and fight for my right to enter Canada to visit my children and grandchildren. The Canadian government imposed a lifetime ban on me from ever again re-entering Canada even though my kids and grandchildren live there.



The struggle continues...

American Political Refugees Fight to Stay in Canada

by Len Bush


You would never guess that the Federal Bureau of Investigation once considered Alan Maki to be one of the most dangerous men in the United States—for his politics, not because he committed a heinous crime, robbed banks, or injured anyone. Now the Canadian government wants to deport Alan back to a 30-year campaign waged against him and his family.


Alan is a communist. His parents are communists and his grandparents were part of the founding of the Communist Party of the United States. A lifelong activist in the civil rights, peace and labour movements, his activities prompted the FBI and the Michigan State Police's "Red Squad" to start a campaign of surveillance and intimidation. His employers have been questioned, his friends and family watched. He has been arrested 60 times for incidents as trivial as spitting on the sidewalk while walking with striking workers. A Canadian immigration adjudicator could not find a single charge that they thought should have been laid. In fact, after all these years of surveillance not one serious charge has ever been laid against him.


His binders contain over a thousand pages of evidence of what has been done to him and it is overwhelming. He asks, "how would you like to live under these conditions," and people shudder at the thought. The government of the United States encouraged right wing extremists to spy on, and harass, his family home in Michigan. These individuals, members of the Michigan Militia, painted swastikas on his house and shot at his 10-year-old son Jeremy.


After the shooting in 1990 (the police captured, but never charged, three people), the Makis decided to get their children to safety. Moving to Marchand, Manitoba, they have been good members of that community since.


But Alan's "big mouth", as the Minister of Immigration calls it, has gotten him into trouble. After being elected to the board of the Manitoba Trappers Association, he wrote articles for the Canadian Trapper and the Grassroots News about anti-aboriginal racism in the association. These articles infuriated the president of the association. Within days the RCMP visited the Maki home, waived the articles at him, and issued a deportation order.


In violation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the RCMP constable and immigration agent tried to prevent Jeremy from going school. Only after the principal, superintendent and provincial Deputy Minister of Education asserted Jeremy's right to go to school was the order revoked. His daughter was ordered to give back her Governor General's and Citizenship Awards, but public outcry allowed her to keep it.


The Makis want to stay in Canada. This is their home. The Makis want to be recognized as political refugees as a result of the persecution they were subjected to in the US. Unfortunately, the Canadian government worries that granting the Makis political refugee status would embarrass the US government. The Makis are asking for a fair hearing open to the public and with full disclosure of all FBI files and related documents from the "Red Squad" files. Neither have been forthcoming.


Former Attorney-Generals of Manitoba Howard Pawley, Roland Penner and Al Mackling urge the Minister of Immigration, Lucienne Robillard, to use her Ministerial Discretion and allow the Maki family to stay as landed immigrants on humanitarian and compassionate grounds. Something that, as former Manitoba Premier Howard Pawley said on CBC radio, "you would expect a good Liberal to do."


Len Bush is an Ottawa area activist who thinks that most of the world's refugees should be considered political refugees of the United States.


Converted October 11, 1999 - Lg


To follow up on this article, contact the author or the organizations/individuals mentioned; do not contact the Peace and Environment Resource Centre - we cannot provide follow up or contact information. This article is an archival copy of the printed one in the Peace and Environment News (PEN). Viewpoints expressed should not be taken to represent the opinions of the Peace and Environment Resource Centre, the PEN, or our supporters.

Democracy... or so the hypocrites claim it to be.

You know, to me all this talk we hear from the United States and Canadian governments about how great democracy is in the two countries makes me sick.

Canada began deportation proceedings against me and my family because I wrote a couple articles against racism.

I moved to Canada in the first place because of the never-ending political repression I was subjected to by the FBI which included the FBI egging on right wing bigots shooting at my kids and the family pets.

When Canada's Minister of Immigration, the Liberal Elinor Caplan, was asked in our meeting with her and her legal staff in her Toronto Office as to why she was being so persistent in deporting me she said in no uncertain terms uttering these very words, "Look at the things Mr. Maki is saying about our government and economic system as he travels across Canada while under a deportation order... the next thing he would be doing if we let him stay is running for public office."

So, the good "liberal" Minister was afraid I would run for public office as a Communist.

Deported from Canada; banned from re-entering Canada for life.

And the FBI's dirty anti-Communist political repression continues unabated just like this rotten Wall Street's government's dirty imperialist wars.

So much for these great big bastions of democracy.

And some people wonder what makes me think capitalism is a stinking rotten to the core system.

According to these pathetic and poor excuses for human beings who are elevated to power in these countries through blatant corruption, people are just supposed to acquiesce and cower to political repression, exploitation, poverty, war and racism.

But now lots of people are standing up and speaking their minds and the government doesn't know what to do about us.

I wonder if they are thinking how many more there are of US then of THEM?

Oh; and I am planning on spending my retirement years fighting my ban on entering Canada and speaking out even more against this rotten social and economic system of capitalism while advocating for socialism--- probably why the United States government is trying to prevent me from collecting the Social Security I'm entitled to... more about this, later.

The next time you hear anyone talking about these two great big bastions of democracy tell them to come talk to me... I'll give them the massive FBI dossier that has been compiled on me.