Family reunification as international history: Rethinking Sino-Canadian relations after 1970

Abstract

Building on the emerging scholarship that treats the history of global migration as a crucial aspect of international history, this article examines the little known 1973 family reunification agreement between Canada and the People’s Republic of China. The article contends that, despite its limitations, the agreement was an important milestone in the history of Sino-Canadian relations. Through a detailed micro-history, the article reveals the shifting political currents that led to the agreement’s successful negotiation, highlighting how, by the early 1970s, Canada and other Western nations were embracing the notion of family reunification as an important human rights issue in the ongoing contests of the global Cold War.