Xenophobia ... that's a concept I have a hard time accepting, but I have had to learn to live with the fact it exists. Maybe I remain naive as I'm getting older and should be acquiring the experience and wisdom needed to accept the inequities of the world. Research arising from my recently awakened interest in genealogy revealed to me the rampant xenophobia which led to centuries of linguistic, cultural and religious (among other forms of) persecution and exile foisted on my ancestors, the Acadians of Nova Scotia. I regret the fact that I spent a large part of my early adulthood successfully eradicating all traces of my natural French accent in order to conform. That was an immature gut reaction to peer pressure. None of that was necessary ... Xenophobia is not a virtue ...

See "Un Canadien Errant" in the database. Though written 100 years later by an exiled Quebec revolutionary, this plaintive song could just as easily express the despair of any of the 10,000 people deported from Acadia in 1755 and subsequent years.

Having vented my abhorrence of xenophobia, let me express my opinion that the Mudcat is not, in any way, shape or form, a haven for xenophobes. To the contrary, I've come to see Mudcatters as some of the most generous, sincere and open-minded people I've ever met. I am proud to be part of the Mudcat experience.

Bob Landry