The Canadian Mackay Club held a lecture on "Why is George Leslie Mackay important? The secret weapon of Taiwan in Canada" on October 6 at the Toronto Overseas Chinese Education Center. The lecture was delivered by Michael Stainton. 

The lecture focused on Mackay’s background, growing up in Canada, and his subsequent missionary career in Taiwan, including his marriage to a Taiwanese woman, Ms. Chang Tsung-ming. Some key details of his life outlined in the lecture included:
1、Mr. Mackay and his wife worked together as a team to overcome many difficulties at that time in Taiwan. Ms. Chang then became the first woman  in Taiwan to speak out for woman's right.

2、Mr. Mackay was the first Canadian to implement Canada’s humanitarian ideas in Taiwan. His accomplishments in Taiwan were so outstanding that many Canadian missionaries were inspired to go overseas. 

3、Mr. Mackay opposed the head tax on Canadian Chinese, considering it to be an example of racial discrimination.

4、Mr. Mackay is the best model of a “New Taiwanese”— a term proposed by former President Lee Teng-hui—because he loved and settled in Taiwan although he was not born in Taiwan.

Mr. Stainton encouraged the people present to support the campaign to issue a commemorative stamps in conjunction with the "150th Anniversary of Mackay arriving in Taiwan". The stamps are scheduled to be issued in Taiwan and Canada in 2022. He hopes that the stamp issue campaign and the anniversary activities will result in more Canadians paying closer attention to Taiwan and its well intentioned efforts to take more part in international affairs.

Photo:Mr. Michael Stainton presenting the lecture.