October 12, 2011
Background:
The Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Foundation focuses on researching and educating the public on civil liberties themes. In 2008, the Foundation established the Civil Liberties Opinion-Editorial Award to coincide with the 75th anniversary of one of the 20th century’s greatest violations of civil liberties – the Famine-Genocide in Ukraine known as the Holodomor. Meanwhile, the year 2014 will mark the 100th anniversary of the commencement of Canada’s first national internment operations of 1914-1920, during which thousands of Ukrainian Canadians were labeled “enemy aliens” and were interned throughout the country. Finally, the 21st century has seen an alarming increase in the activity of the human trafficking industry, with hundreds of thousands around the world falling victim to this form of modern-day slavery every year. The Foundation offers an annual award to commemorate the many victims of both events. In so doing, the Foundation seeks to engage high school and post-secondary (university, college, etc.) students in researching, writing and submitting opinion-editorials to newspapers.
Value:
$1000.00 (In the event the opinion-editorial of more than one student is published in a major Canadian newspaper, the top two submissions, adjudged according to quality of content, will be eligible for a prize of $1000.00 and $500.00, respectively.)
Conditions:
The award is open to all currently‐enrolled high school and post‐secondary students who are residents of any province or territory in Canada. The award will be presented for an English‐ or French‐language opinion‐editorial based on a civil liberties theme. The award is restricted to op‐ed publication (print or online edition) in the following newspapers and no others:
Calgary Herald
Calgary Sun
Edmonton Journal
Edmonton Sun
Globe and Mail
Halifax Chronicle‐Herald
Kingston Whig‐Standard
Le Devoir
Montreal Gazette
National Post
Ottawa Citizen
Ottawa Sun
Quebec Chronicle‐Telegraph
Regina Leader‐Post
Saskatoon StarPhoenix
Toronto Star
Toronto Sun
Vancouver Province
Vancouver Sun
Victoria Times Colonist
Winnipeg Free Press
Winnipeg Sun
There is no limit as to the number of submissions students make, nor does it matter to how many newspapers. However, the Foundation will grant a maximum of one award per student‐author.
Suggested Topics
Students must write their opinion‐editorial based on a civil liberties theme. The following are potential topics for students to consider in order to narrow down their research within this vast topic area. Students do not have to stick to these topics.
Why do Canada’s first national internment operations not figure prominently into Canadians’ knowledge of their nation’s history? What might be done to promote greater awareness of this episode of Canadian history?
New York Times columnist Walter Duranty repeatedly denied the existence of a Ukrainian famine in his 1933 articles. Is false reporting grounds for revocation of his Pulitzer Prize for journalism?
What should the Canadian government do in an effort to combat the ever-growing worldwide human trafficking industry and curb the increase in victims of forced labour, exploitation and other incidences of human trafficking?
Submissions and Awarding
It is up to the student to correctly submit their opinion‐editorial to the newspaper(s) of their choice. Most newspapers require contact information (address, daytime phone number, etc.) in addition to one’s name. In the event that a student’s opinion‐editorial appears in print or online in one or more major newspapers, the student shall be responsible for notifying the Foundation of this publishing. As such, the student must provide a hard or electronic copy of the print edition opinion‐editorial or an electronic copy of the online edition opinion‐editorial within five days of publication. In addition to the published piece, students must provide a completed application form (included below).
The mailing address for hard copy is as follows: Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Foundation Award 48 Wood Crest Close SW Calgary, Alberta T2W 3P9
The name of the award recipient will be made public. The Foundation reserves the right to publish the winning opinion‐editorial(s) in major Ukrainian Canadian newspapers (e.g., Ukrainian News).