For refugees from soviet or fascist regimes, the rights and privileges we now take for granted must have seemed incredible.  This is a copy of a document found among the papers of Maria Peters, likely from the mid-50s.

SOME OF THE RIGHTS AND PRIVILEGES OF A CANADIAN / Rechte und Privilegien eines Kanadischen Bürgers

 
1. The right of free speech.  Redefreiheit.

2. The right of free assembly. Versammlungsfreiheit.

3. The protection of laws made by the people themselves.
Schutz der Gezetze, von den Bürgen selbst gemacht.

4. The protection of law courts which are free from party control.
Schutz des Gesetzes im Gericht, frei von Partei-Kontrolle.

5. Protection from oppression and injustice, even if one belongs to a minority.
Schutz vor Unterdrückung, auch wenn man im Lande zu einer Minderheit gehört.

6. The right to vote as one desires.
Man darf wählen, wie man glaubt dass es recht ist.

7. The right to move from place to place in Canada.  Bewegungsfreiheit.

8. The right to leave Canada if one so desires.
Jeder hat das Recht, Canada zu verlassen, wenn er es wünscht.

9. The right to enjoy all legal privileges, regardless of race, creed or class.
Jeder Bürger hat das Recht, alle legalen Privilegien zu geniessen, abgesehen von Glaube, Rasse oder Gesellschaftsklasse.

10.  The right to worship as one desires and to have one’s own political opinions.
Religionsfreiheit und das Recht seine eigene politischen Ansichten zu haben.

Hymns of our mothers and fathers: Take Thou my Hands O Father
by Louise Bergen Price

 Julie von Hausmann, a Baltic-German poet, 1826-1901, was a shy woman who made her living as a teacher and governess.  She was often ill, and in sleepless nights crafted her deepest thoughts and struggles into poems.  These she only shared with those closest to her, but through a friend some of her poems arrived at the door of Pastor Gustav Knakof of Berlin, who offered to have them published.  Von Hausmann agreed, but only if she could remain anonymous.  In 1862, the first edition of  Maiblumen: Lieder einer Stillen im Lande was published.   The poem, “So nimm denn meine Hände” was set to music by Friedrich Silcher and was soon widely distributed.
 It was a song that Mennonites quickly adopted, and often sang to comfort those leaving as well as those remaining.  It was sung by those about to be arrested and carted away in the Black Raven.  Today, it often accompanies former refugees on their last journey home.
 
Reference: “Julie von Hausmann.” http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julie_von_Hausmann