When Canada spent $100 million to rescue Lebanese-Canadians from the war between Israel and Hizbullah last year, some Canadians reacted by accusing these people of being fair weather—or, rather, ill weather—Canadians. As former Immigration Minister Montel Solberg put it, “Canadians want to know that citizenship means something, that we are not just a port in the storm.”

Well, Jack Jedwab, director of the Association for Canadian Studies, provided an analysis of 2001 Statistics Canada data addressing the issue. He said that the data show that 80% of dual citizens felt a strong or very strong sense of belonging to Canada, compared to 84% who held only Canadian citizenship. And for French-speaking dual citizens, 68% had a strong or very strong sense of belonging to Canada, compared to only 57% for those with only Canadian citizenship. Many French-speakers identify with Quebec rather than Canada as a whole.

The issue of dual citizenship is currently being reviewed by the government.