- 注册
- 2002-10-07
- 消息
- 402,187
- 荣誉分数
- 76
- 声望点数
- 0
Kathleen Stafford has watched with a heavy heart the chill in Canada-U.S. relations after President Donald Trump’s acerbic, post-G7 tweet storm. Nearly 40 years ago, a small team of Canadians risked everything to save Stafford and five other Americans fleeing for their lives during the Iranian revolution.
“No other country or people would have ‘unreservedly’ stepped up to protect us like your people, embassy and government did,” Stafford said in telephone and email exchanges from Niger where she lives with her husband, former American diplomat Joseph Stafford. “The lengths your diplomats and government went to protect six strangers was extraordinary.”
Tehran was Joseph’s first foreign post with the U.S. State Department. After taking a consular course, Kathleen joined her husband on Sept. 9, 1979 to work in the embassy’s visa department. Iran was already broiling with revolution and less than two months later, on Nov. 4, Islamic radicals stormed the U.S. Embassy, taking 52 Americans hostage.
The Staffords and four other Americans avoided capture, finding temporary safety for five days with other foreign diplomats before being taken in by Canadian diplomat John Sheardown. The Staffords later moved into the home of Canadian Ambassador Ken Taylor (partly because the Staffords couldn’t play bridge like the rest of the Sheardown group).
The Americans were sheltered for 79 days before being spirited out in an elaborate plan set up by the CIA in conjunction with the Canadian government, which agreed to issue genuine Canadian passports to the six. Stafford was even given clothes with Canadian labels to stuff into her suitcase as part of the ruse.
The story was told in the 2012 Hollywood film Argo, although the movie was criticized for vastly understating Canada’s role in the rescue.
“Canada never gets enough credit for all the things you do for us,” Stafford said. “We were lucky enough to have the Canadians shelter us — to save us.”
Government relations between the two countries plunged this week after Trump’s tweets following the G7 meeting in Charlevoix, Que. Trump called Prime Minister Justin Trudeau “very dishonest and weak” and threatened additional tariffs that would “cost Canadians a lot of money.” White House officials followed up by claiming Canada had stabbed the U.S. in the back in the negotiations, with one saying “there was a special place in hell” for leaders like Trudeau. (He later apologized.)
While Canadians mount a growing campaign to boycott American goods and redraw vacation plans to travel at home instead of the U.S., many Americans are sending their love north.
“The recent intentionally antagonistic comments that were directed at your prime minister and by extension to all Canadians do not represent the heart and soul of Americans,” singer Paul Simon told a cheering Bell Centre audience in Montreal Wednesday night. After reciting the number of Canadians killed in Afghanistan in nine years of fighting after the 9/11 attacks in the U.S., Simon said, “The idea — the idea— that anyone could say that Canada stabbed us in the back over tariffs over milk is simply ludicrous.”
Stafford said many Americans share her and her husband’s love for Canada.
“Thank you, Canada. Thanks again. We will always be grateful for what you keep doing and all around the world as well. Every place we go, we see the blue helmets. When Katrina happened, Canada was ready before anyone else to come and help us.
“Thank you for being the very best of neighbors.”
bcrawford@postmedia.com
Twitter.com/getBAC
查看原文...
“No other country or people would have ‘unreservedly’ stepped up to protect us like your people, embassy and government did,” Stafford said in telephone and email exchanges from Niger where she lives with her husband, former American diplomat Joseph Stafford. “The lengths your diplomats and government went to protect six strangers was extraordinary.”
Tehran was Joseph’s first foreign post with the U.S. State Department. After taking a consular course, Kathleen joined her husband on Sept. 9, 1979 to work in the embassy’s visa department. Iran was already broiling with revolution and less than two months later, on Nov. 4, Islamic radicals stormed the U.S. Embassy, taking 52 Americans hostage.
The Staffords and four other Americans avoided capture, finding temporary safety for five days with other foreign diplomats before being taken in by Canadian diplomat John Sheardown. The Staffords later moved into the home of Canadian Ambassador Ken Taylor (partly because the Staffords couldn’t play bridge like the rest of the Sheardown group).
The Americans were sheltered for 79 days before being spirited out in an elaborate plan set up by the CIA in conjunction with the Canadian government, which agreed to issue genuine Canadian passports to the six. Stafford was even given clothes with Canadian labels to stuff into her suitcase as part of the ruse.
The story was told in the 2012 Hollywood film Argo, although the movie was criticized for vastly understating Canada’s role in the rescue.
“Canada never gets enough credit for all the things you do for us,” Stafford said. “We were lucky enough to have the Canadians shelter us — to save us.”
Government relations between the two countries plunged this week after Trump’s tweets following the G7 meeting in Charlevoix, Que. Trump called Prime Minister Justin Trudeau “very dishonest and weak” and threatened additional tariffs that would “cost Canadians a lot of money.” White House officials followed up by claiming Canada had stabbed the U.S. in the back in the negotiations, with one saying “there was a special place in hell” for leaders like Trudeau. (He later apologized.)
While Canadians mount a growing campaign to boycott American goods and redraw vacation plans to travel at home instead of the U.S., many Americans are sending their love north.
“The recent intentionally antagonistic comments that were directed at your prime minister and by extension to all Canadians do not represent the heart and soul of Americans,” singer Paul Simon told a cheering Bell Centre audience in Montreal Wednesday night. After reciting the number of Canadians killed in Afghanistan in nine years of fighting after the 9/11 attacks in the U.S., Simon said, “The idea — the idea— that anyone could say that Canada stabbed us in the back over tariffs over milk is simply ludicrous.”
Stafford said many Americans share her and her husband’s love for Canada.
“Thank you, Canada. Thanks again. We will always be grateful for what you keep doing and all around the world as well. Every place we go, we see the blue helmets. When Katrina happened, Canada was ready before anyone else to come and help us.
“Thank you for being the very best of neighbors.”
bcrawford@postmedia.com
Twitter.com/getBAC
查看原文...