Amish refugees in Québec
An Amish family from North Dakota is seeking refugee status in Canada after settling down in a small town in Québec.
Last May, Matthew Hunt, accompanied by his wife and five children, took the bus all the way up to Saint-Raphaël de Bellechasse, a town on the south shore of Québec City. They have since solicited the help of star Québec lawyer Guy Bertrand to represent them in obtaining refugee status in the country. Because of the nature of such a request, the details which have brought the Hunts to flee their country have not been made public. According to the residents of Saint-Raphaël, the tense political climate in the United States statutes as the main reason for their emigration. Allegedly, their first country of choice was Germany, but the trek to Europe was abandoned for unknown reasons.
The reasons why the family chose Saint-Raphaël are unknown as well.
In the meantime, the rural Québec City suburb has accepted the newcomers rather well into their community. The house they reside in was an abandoned ancestral home which the town’s mayor, Clément Lacroix (no relation!), sold to them for a modest amount of money. There are also reports of the Hunts exchanging bread, danishes, and home-churned butter to the already established residents who stop by to offer food, firewood, or car rides into the village.
Mr. Bertrand believes that they are the first Amish family in Canadian history to seek asylum within Canada’s borders.
The Hunts are now currently in Ottawa preparing their case.
Source: Journal de Québec, september 27 2006
That’s pretty interesting. The first? I saw an Amish family in Walmart before…it was rather amusing.
Was there an anti-amish pogrom of which I was unaware?
yes
Damn it, why am I never invited to the good parties?
Were they psychich Amish? They wanted to save their children from horrible school slaughters?