A LIFE UNCOVERED
Evelyn Wilson, the daughter of Igor and Svetlana Gouzenko, spoke with Canada’s History about living under witness protection at Camp X near Oshawa, Ontario, and, later, at Port Credit, Ontario.
Did your parents know much about Canada or the West prior to moving here?
When they arrived, they had a certain perception of … what Canadians and Americans were like, and as each day passed their illusions were dispelled. They discovered that Canada and the United States were beautiful countries, with beautiful people and very prosperous societies — [and] certainly more freedoms than they had ever known in their lives. They were born into a totalitarian society … and really knew no other.
Growing up, how aware were you of your parents’ real identities?
I had no knowledge of it. We grew up with the understanding that we were a Czechoslovakian family. We believed this; we had no reason to think otherwise. Our parents had accents [and] spoke a different language, [but] we were not allowed to speak that language. We lived in a community that was largely Anglo-Saxon … so we were rather the odd family out. … But beyond that I would say that we felt pretty normal growing up in that community. … Certainly, we didn’t pay much attention to politics. But later in life, as you reflect, you do see a juxtaposition of history and day-to-day events in growing up in a witness-protection program.
How did you find out the truth?
It wasn’t until my mid-teens. We all knew about events in the Cold War, but they didn’t seem to impact us directly as students in public school and high school. We certainly heard about the different confrontations — when Czechoslovakia was invaded [by the Russians], when Hungary was invaded…. I really didn’t understand any of the story until my mother told me [our] true identity. It happened because I confronted her with an event that happened at school, so I brought it to her and said, “You know, this doesn’t make sense. Can you explain?” and she did. We were in the kitchen. She just kept talking, and I kept listening … and questioning. And the bottom line is, she said, “You must keep this absolutely secret. When confronted, you simply pass it off, you simply dismiss it … and carry on for the sake of the family.” I think this has always been their first priority — the family. They really did protect us.
Many Canadians know of Igor and Svetlana Gouzenko as historical figures. What were they like as people?
They were the best parents anyone could imagine, considering the demands on their lives. Once I put myself in their shoes, I understood so much better [the] sacrifice they made and how amazing they were in their roles as parents. I know my father was among the very best fathers there could be. He would be really concerned about our security and safety — these were his number one priority. They were [also] true artists at heart. Now, that wasn’t part of the cover story — that they were artists — but every day they were involved in artwork. These are some of the greatest memories I have of our parents — sitting at the easel and painting [with] their oils. They met in university in art school … and they both loved art. This thread carried on right through their life. I’m sure it kept them strong and able to handle some of the most difficult experiences that anyone could imagine.
What do you want readers to take away from your story?
I hope they are able to identify with our parents and the difficulties that they had in their lives here in Canada under these very difficult circumstances. They were certainly wonderful people. They had a love of art [and] music, [and they] certainly appreciated education and its value and encouraged us all in these directions.