Spring 2023 - Citizen Ships

 

Imbuing the occasion with an air of solemnity, he asked me to raise my right hand and, in view of the US flag which he pointed to on the pole behind him, had me recite the oath of renunciation. And then it was done. He took my passport, and I walked out onto Sussex Drive past the safety bollards the embassy had put up after 9/11. A local coffee shop beckoned, and I went in, set to ponder what I鈥檇 just experienced 鈥


Bio:

Ken Victor鈥檚 last essay in Queen鈥檚 Quarterly (126/3), 鈥淏elief, Belonging, and Behaviour,鈥 explored the context and assumptions behind Quebec鈥檚 Bill 21. His collection of poetry We Were Like Everyone Else appeared in 2019 (Cormorant Books).