The Senate

Pursuant to notice of October 1, 2026, moved:

That the Senate of Canada:

1.officially recognize October 23 as Hungarian Heritage Day in Canada; and

2.encourage the Government of Canada and public institutions to recognize this day each year; and

That this recognition be a first step toward officially incorporating this day into the calendar of national days recognized by the Government of Canada.

He said: Honourable senators, I rise today to put forward a motion that the Senate of Canada recognize October 23 as Canadian Hungarian Heritage Day in Canada.

In this time of crisis for our country, I wrestled with the idea of bringing this motion forward. We have generational challenges to face, and I am, first and foremost, a Canadian. But I do believe adopting this motion is a recognition of what Canada has to offer the world.

This country has given me and my fellow Hungarian Canadians so much. In turn, our commitment to democracy and freedom has travelled back through these links to the land of my birth and has played no small part in seeing Hungary shrug off the efforts of authoritarians and totalitarians alike. They have learned lessons from us — good lessons — and I am proud of that.

The history of Hungarians coming to Canada goes back some ways. The first Hungarian to set foot in what would become Canada is believed to be Stephanus Parmenius from Buda, as in the town right beside Pest. Budapest is made up of the twin cities of Buda and Pest. He landed in what would become St. John’s, Newfoundland, in 1583.

He is thought to be the first European to write poems here in Canada. That’s not surprising to anyone who is Hungarian; poetry is a big, big deal. Hungary is a passionate country with passionate poetry.

Three centuries later, Hungarians began to arrive in waves in this country. The first were farmers and labourers. Initially, they settled in the United States, but then they made the wise decision to move north in the 19th century, setting up farming communities in what would become Pamela Wallin’s Saskatchewan. Then, in the early 20th century, around 26,000 Hungarians arrived seeking opportunity after the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Following World War II, roughly 12,000 came escaping communism. Then, following the Hungarian Revolution on October 23, 1956, Canada opened its doors to more than 37,000 Hungarian refugees. That was more than any country at the time relative to its population. Once again, Canada was punching above its weight, offering liberty, freedom and equality to refugees from communism. It was one of the largest refugee resettlement efforts to take place in Canadian history.

This cohort included my mom, my dad and myself. I was only two and a half. My father smuggled me out of communist Hungary in a backpack. For those Hungarians who escaped to Canada following the violence of 1956, we, for the first time, experienced what freedom looked like.

In a time before the internet and easy, borderless communication, this was critical. Stories poured back into Hungary of Canada and what Canada had to offer, how a government represents and works for its citizens and democracy and not for the self-interests of those in power.

While “goulash communism” was relatively freer than that of other Eastern bloc countries, it was still communism, far removed from the freedom and liberty we lived here.

For 30 years following the uprising of 1956, Hungarian Canadians pushed on the cracks that were forming in the Kádár regime. Given these connections across the Atlantic, in 1980, the first Canadian studies program opened at Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest. Communism, of course, collapsed by the end of that decade, and on October 23, 1989, Hungary declared itself a republic, bringing forth a democracy that, while tested, has shown itself to be resilient.

Senate colleagues, I appreciate that I have asked if we could vote on this motion quicker than is customary. After meeting with the Hungarian Ambassador, Miklós Lengyel, earlier this year to discuss the upcoming seventieth anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution, it occurred to me this was a fine way to acknowledge our shared history, and I gave notice quickly after we returned. October 23 is only a few sitting days away, and as we know, we don’t always get to this part of the Order Paper as much as we’d like.

As you’ve heard, October 23 is a historic day not only in the country of my birth but also for the over 340,000 Hungarian Canadians living here today. It’s important because it marks the beginning of how this country swung open its doors for us seven decades ago and gave us the opportunity to freely build our lives and make this country our home. I will be forever grateful to this place, this country, this land and my home for welcoming me all those years ago.

I would respectfully request that my Senate colleagues join me in my gratitude by recognizing October 23 as Hungarian heritage day in Canada. Thank you. Meegwetch.