Thoughts From a "Lost Canadian" About "The Canadian Caper."

There has been much talk from the massively corrupt likely war criminal who currently occupies the US white house which has damaged the long relationship between the US and our dear friends, neighbors, and family in Canada - so much so there is even talk of Canada preparing to defend itself from an US invasion. This breaks my heart.

Whether I was a "Lost Canadian" or not, I have been a Michigander all my life and have always believed Canada to be the best neighbor and friend a country could ever have - or hope to have. It also angers me. How dare the so-called "president" of the US behave in such a shameful, despicable, disgraceful way! Please know, there are many of us in the US who feel as I do and we hope to be able to vote in November, flip congress, and hope they are able to take their seats in January and then begin to hold the criminal "president" accountable. We hope - we also believe he will do everything possible to stop all this from happening. Things are not well here in the US at this time.

But, today I want to share an account I found online about Kenneth Douglas Taylor, the Canadian diplomat to Iran during the Iran Hostage Crisis in 1979 and the incredible risk he took to save the lives of six Americans . . .

His name was Kenneth Douglas Taylor. He was born in 1934 in Calgary, Alberta. He was a Canadian diplomat. In 1977, he was appointed Canadian Ambassador to Iran. He arrived in Tehran with his wife Patricia and a small embassy staff. Then, in November 1979, everything changed.

Iranian revolutionary students stormed the US Embassy in Tehran. They took 52 American diplomats hostage. The Iran Hostage Crisis began. It would last 444 days. But in the initial confusion of the embassy takeover, six American diplomats had managed to slip out a back door. They had escaped the embassy but were now trapped in Tehran. They were being hunted by Iranian revolutionary forces. If they were captured, they would join the other American hostages. They needed help.

They approached the British, Swedish, and New Zealand Embassies, but they were not able to help. Then they approached Ken Taylor's Canadian Embassy. Taylor did not hesitate. He took them in. He hid them. For 79 days, the six American diplomats lived in secret in Canadian diplomatic homes. They could not go outside. They could not use the phone. They had to be silent when Iranian visitors came to the door. The Canadian staff — Taylor, Sheardown, and their wives — protected them, fed them, entertained them, and kept them hidden.

Any discovery would have meant: Diplomatic disaster for Canada. Almost certain arrest and execution of the American diplomats. Serious danger to the Canadian embassy staff. Ken Taylor did it anyway. He believed it was the right thing to do. He believed Canada had a moral obligation to help fellow North American democratic allies in mortal danger. He believed if he was in the same situation in another country, he would want them to help him.

In late January 1980, the situation could no longer be sustained. The Americans had to get out of Iran. The Canadian government — with the personal involvement of Prime Minister Joe Clark — worked with the CIA to develop an extraction plan. The plan was audacious.

The Americans would be given fake Canadian passports. They would be given cover stories — they were a Canadian film crew scouting locations for a science fiction movie. They would fly out of Tehran's Mehrabad Airport pretending to be Canadian filmmakers. The Canadian Parliament passed a secret order-in-council authorizing the issuance of the fake passports — one of only a handful of times in Canadian history such a mechanism was used.

The Canadian passports were prepared. The cover stories were rehearsed. The airline tickets were purchased. On January 28, 1980, at 5:35 AM Tehran time, the 6 Americans and Ken Taylor's Canadian embassy staff walked into Mehrabad Airport. They passed through Iranian customs. They boarded a Swissair flight to Zurich and flew out of Iran. They were free. They landed in Zurich and were transferred to US custody.

Within hours of the extraction, the Canadian Embassy in Tehran was closed. Ken Taylor and his staff left Iran on the same day. The operation became known as "The Canadian Caper." It was, at the time, one of the most successful diplomatic rescue operations in modern history.

When the news broke, Canada was celebrated across the United States. The New York Post ran the headline: "Thank You, Canada!" American newspapers, radio, and TV covered the Canadian role for weeks. President Jimmy Carter personally called Prime Minister Joe Clark to thank Canada. Streets and schools across the US were briefly renamed in honour of Canada.

Ken Taylor was awarded: The Order of Canada (Companion) — Canada's highest civilian honour. The US Congressional Gold Medal — one of only a handful of Canadians to ever receive it. The US Presidential Medal of Freedom — the highest US civilian honour. Honorary US citizenship by act of Congress. Numerous honorary degrees. The other Canadian diplomats — especially John Sheardown and Pat Taylor — were also recognized.

The story was later made into a Hollywood film — "Argo" (2012). The film, directed by and starring Ben Affleck, dramatized the extraction operation. Unfortunately, "Argo" significantly minimized the Canadian role — portraying the operation as primarily a CIA success with Canadian assistance, rather than the reality: a primarily Canadian operation with critical CIA assistance in the endgame. Ken Taylor publicly criticized the film for downplaying Canada's role. The film's producers eventually acknowledged the criticism and revised some marketing materials.

But the actual history was clear: Canada hid the Americans for 79 days. Canada took the personal, diplomatic, and physical risks. Canada issued the fake passports through a secret parliamentary order. Canada extracted the Americans through Canadian embassy resources. Canada closed its own embassy the same day, sacrificing Canadian-Iranian relations for years. Canada did all of that quietly, without publicity, and at real cost. This is what Canada does.

Ken Taylor died in 2015 at age 81. His death was mourned across Canada and the United States. Canadian, American, and international leaders paid tribute. Barack Obama, then US President, released a statement calling Taylor "a true friend of the United States."

Ken Taylor represented something specific about Canadian foreign policy: Quiet effectiveness. Willingness to take moral risks when they were needed. Loyalty to democratic allies even when the cost was significant. The Canadian tradition of doing the right thing without demanding credit. He is one of the greatest Canadian diplomats in our country's history and deserves to be remembered. He deserves to be known and deserves to be part of every Canadian schoolchild's history.

Ken Taylor. Calgary boy. Canadian Ambassador to Iran. Hero of the Canadian Caper. The Canadian who hid six Americans in his home for 79 days and got them home. The quiet hero who saved lives without asking for anything in return. The Canadian who reminded the world what Canadians do when it matters.

We are Canada. We help our friends. We do it quietly. We do it at real cost. We do it because it is the right thing to do. Ken Taylor showed us how. We should never forget him.

Same story. Same fire. Same country. Same quiet courage.

Thank you Canada. This is Canada, a true friend. Sadly the US is currently being "led" by someone who has no clue what it means to be thankful, loyal, and a genuine friend. I am SO sorry, Canada. I hope this begins to change in November.