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Anti-Semitism in Canada in the 1930s

发布时间:2017-04-08
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Anti-Semitism in Canada in the 1930s

Today Canada is known as one of the most accepting and multicultural countries in the world. We view ourselves as accepting and open to other cultures and nationalities. This view is not only held by Canadians, but Canada is widely regarded by people worldwide as open and accepting. While this is very true today, this has not always been the case. When we look to our past we see some moments in our history which do not reflect the image that we have today. One of these moments is the riot at Christie Pits. Although this riot was a huge incident, it was only the tip of the iceberg. It was the culmination of years of anti-Semitism in Toronto and racism, and was merely the climax of a much deeper problem. The 1930s in Canada saw a spike in anti-Semitism akin to nothing that has happened before and nothing that has happened after. There were Swastika clubs formed and youth wearing swastika badges in the east end of Toronto. In Quebec, there was a party modeled after the Nazi party, called the Parti National Social Chrétien. While there is debate as to what were the reasons for this, there can be no debate that this was a dark time in Canada's history and is in no way reflective of what Canada is today. However, in order to prevent these horrible occurrences from happening in the future, it is important to understand the causes of these events. This paper seeks to explore and understand some of the main causes of the anti-Semitism in Canada in the 1930s which culminated in the Christie Pits riot in Toronto, and in the Voyage of The Damned. This essay will explore the foreign influence from Nazi Germany, which not created, but certainly awakened the anti-Semitism which was more dormant previously. It will also explore the tensions caused by the poor economic conditions of the time, which caused animosity towards all immigrants, but Jews especially. Lastly, this essay will explore the racism towards all foreign groups in Canada at the time, which ended up being directed especially towards the Jews in the 1930s. The anti-Semitism in Canada during the 1930s and the Christie Pits riot were a result of foreign influence, the poor economic conditions of the time, and the racism that existed in Canada during that time period.

The first reason for the anti-Semitism that will be explored in this paper is the foreign influence from Nazi Germany. This is not to say that everything was good and then suddenly the Nazi influence created anti-Semitism in Canada, but it certainly awakened as sleeping beast. The two most obvious connections between Nazi Germany and the anti-Semitism in Canada are the Swastika clubs1 and the Parti National Social Chrétien.2 Anti-Semitism in Canada existed since the birth of our country, but due to Nazi influences it spiked. The previous two examples are the most visible results of this influence. First one must take a look at the Swastika clubs. How the symbol of Nazi Germany make its way to Toronto streets can be explained by analyzing the newspaper articles at the time. There were 4 major newspapers in Toronto at the time, and The Telegraph was the right-wing populist one of the four3. The Telegram had xenophobic views which played well with the people who joined organizations such as the Swastika clubs. This newspaper was therefore chosen by these Swastika clubs as their vehicle to talk to the public4. This is how the Swastika got out as a symbol, the Swastika club would talk to the Gentile youth through the Telegram, which was already read by the more right wing and xenophobic section of the population. This would further push these youths to join organizations such as the Pits gang and Swastika clubs. It is important to note that following the Christie Pits riot, the display of Swastikas was banned by the mayor at the time William James Stewart. There were no further riots after Mayor Stewart banned the Swastika.5 These Swastika clubs demonstrated just how susceptive we are to foreign influences and how the targeting of a specific demographic through mass media can breed radicalism. The Christie Pits riot was the pinnacle of anti-Semitism in Toronto, because after it the Swastika was banned and things slowly returned to calm.

In the rest of Canada anti-Semitism was still rampant. The Parti National Social Chrétien was only founded in 1934, after the events in Toronto transpired6. It was founded by Adrien Arcand, who proclaimed himself the "Canadian Fuhrer". Here we see the extent of Nazi influence. There was a party modeled after the Nazi party and its leader proclaimed himself "Fuhrer". He wanted Canadian Jews to all be moved near Hudson Bay, which is akin to Concentration Camps in Germany6. It is quite startling that something like this would be proposed by a leader of a political party in Canada, a party that took part in national elections until 1940 when it was disbanded. The party in 1938 merged with other racist organizations, and held a convention in Kingston in 19382. The party itself had very minor influence, its largest convention, held in Toronto, only gathered around 800 followers2. However, for a party to resemble the Nazi party so closely and to openly advocate for the persecution of Jews is something that was new to Canada, and only happened due to the influence of Hitler and the Nazi party. No matter how much anti-Semitism existed. without the influence of the Nazi party, there could be no Swastika clubs, as the Swastika would not even be seen as a symbol of anti-Semitism. The practice of blaming the Jews for societal problems would not be as wide-spread as it was without the events that transpired in Nazi Germany in the 1930s, and there could be no political party based entirely off the Nazi party. There could also be no person proclaiming himself as "The Canadian Fuhrer".

These unfortunate events show that despite the fact that anti-Semitism existed before, the influence from Nazi Germany resulted in a spike in anti-Semitism and provided an example for the anti-Semites in Canada to follow. It emboldened anti-Semitic views in Canada and provide pretext for events such as the Christie Pits riot and for the The Parti National Social Chrétien, and therefore must be viewed as one of the driving forces behind the anti-Semitism that existed in Canada in the 1930s.

The second reason for the spike in anti-Semitism in the 1930s was the poor economic condition of the time. The 1930s, especially the early 1930s were the time of the worst economic performance in history. To this day it is held as a benchmark for how far the global economy can decline7. As a result, the white Anglo-Saxon majority was looking for a scapegoat to blame their economic troubles on. They turned towards the immigrants because the immigrants were considered to be the ones taking the jobs intended for native-born Canadians. This is for two reasons. The first and foremost is because these immigrants were willing to take the same jobs at a lower pay than native-born Canadians. They were also willing to work longer hours, and were more susceptible to employer abuse, so overall employers preferred hiring immigrants over native-born Canadians. The other reason is because by the 1920s, and into the 1930s, many of these immigrants had broken through and have established their own businesses, and some have moved on to become doctors, lawyers, and government workers. This angered the native-born Canadians even more because they felt that immigrants, who were in the eyes of native Canadians not really Canadian, were occupying positions in higher society, while native-born Canadians were left behind, often times jobless and poor8. This stereotype was especially directed against Jews. The discrimination of Jews based on economic perceptions such as wealth and occupation is called economic anti-Semitism, and is one of the biggest causes of anti-Semitism worldwide. This hatred gets stronger when there is an economic downturn, because with poor economic times comes jealousy towards those who are doing well, and if a certain group of the population is perceived to be doing well, despite the fact that they really may not be, it will result in jealousy and hatred, and perhaps even the belief that that group is responsible for the poor economic times, as they seem to be profiting from it.

In 1931 in Toronto, there was a survey conducted, and it studied the different occupations in which Jews found themselves at the time. It found that Jewish males dominated the Merchandising category, had a significant lead in manufacturing, and had a big lead in the professional sector, while lagging greatly in primary industries. This the manufacturing and merchandising industries were really hit hard during the great depression, so it shows that Jews suffered just as much as any other group during this time period, and the perception that they did well during this time period or somehow profited from a global economic downturn is absurd, yet it has led to an increase in anti-Semitism. Looking at the statistic for Jewish females, we find similar results, leads in manufacturing and merchandising, however instead of professional, there is a large lead in clerical. These occupations are also by no means high-class and were not safe from the impact of the great depression. Overall, Jews only made up 3.38% of physicians and surgeons and 4.38% of lawyers9. This shows that the perception that these fields were dominated by Jews is completely false. At the time, Jews were only first-generation, and had not had yet the chance to rise to the level at which they were perceived to be. The economic anti-Semitism was one of the primary reasons for the discrimination Jews experienced, and was completely out of place because Jews were not the highest-earning demographic, they worked in industries that were some on the hardest hit during the depression, and suffered just as much if not more than the rest of the population.

Jews were one of the poorer demographics at the time, which is demonstrated by their underrepresentation in the fields of medicine and law, and their overrepresentation in fields such as manufacturing and merchandising. There were as in all other racial groups people who fared well during the depression, but in the Jewish community this number was no higher than in any other community. All immigrants suffered discrimination during the 1930s due to the economic downturn, but the Jews of the time were the ones most affected by this, due to the economic anti-Semitism that existed in Canada at the time.

The last reason that will be explored in this paper is the inherit anti-Semitism and racism that existed in Canada at the time. Although anti-Semitism was most rampant at the time, it is certainly not restricted to the 1930s, it existed way before then and simply carried into the 1930s, and was amplified by the events during the time period. The earliest manifestation of anti-Semitism in Canada occurred in 1808. In 1905 a speech was delivered in the House of Commons which urged Canada to keep it's gates shut to Jewish immigrants10. Anti-Semitisms was really rampant in Quebec, where they were associated with "dangerous" ideas such as modernism and liberalism10. This is perhaps why "The Canadian Fuhrer" was Quebecois and why the The Parti National Social Chrétien was founded there6. There were two famous authors which advocated anti-Semitism. From the Anglophone side there was Goldwin Smith, and from the Francophone side there was Abbé Lionel Groulx. Smith heavily advocated against Jews11, and heavily influenced the politics of Mackenzie King and Henri Bourassa12. This is perhaps why anti-Semitism was not as closely watched as it should have been, since Mackenzie King was in power for the majority of the time period leading up to and during the 1930s. And it could also be the reason why the MS St. Louis was denied entry into Canada in 1939. The MS St. Louis was a vessel carrying 937 European refugees who were seeking to escape Nazi persecution. It was turned down in Cuba, and proceeded to Florida. America fired a warning shot at the ship and forced it to turn around. In Canada immigration officials and cabinet ministers hostile to Jews persuaded the Prime Minister not to intervene. This shows that wide-spread anti-Semitism existed in Canada at the time even without the Swastikas and Nazi influence. The ship was then turned around and went back to Europe. This voyage has been dubbed "The Voyage of the Damned". It is interesting to note that the Dominican Republic, a nation not usually commended for its multiculturalism and acceptance like Canada is, offered to take in 100,000 Jewish immigrants. This fact alone should invoke feelings of shame in Canadians about our attitudes towards Jews in the past.

The Christie Pits riot and The Voyage of the Damned are the two most tragic anti-Semitic incidents that occurred in Canada in the 1930s. While the Christie Pits riot was a result of heavy influence form Nazi Germany, the plight of MS St Louis was a result of home-grown racism and anti-Semitism. While the general public, such as the perpetrators of the Christie Pits riot, are susceptible to foreign influence, high ranking government officials are not. They cannot be influenced by another nation's policy on something, which shows that anti-Semitism in Canada goes much deeper than the 1930s. It was a home grown problem, cultivated by the works of anti-Semitic intellectuals such as Smith and Groulx, who believed Jews were parasites and a problem to society. This inherit anti-Semitism is the reason why the MS St. Louis was turned back from Canada, and is now a black spot in our history.

Anti-Semitism in Canada has been around long before the 1930s. There have been cases of it noted as early as 1808, and it is no surprise that it was still around in the 1930s. There were intellectuals advocating against Jews in both English and French Canada. Jews were perceived on both sides as dangerous. On the English side, they were seen as parasites to society. On the French side they were seen as dangerous because they were associated with modernism and liberalism. Although foreign influence and economic conditions emboldened and increased anti-Semitism, it was an inherit part of Canadian society in the 1930s.

The anti-Semitism in Canada during the 1930s and the Christie Pits riot were a result of foreign influence, the poor economic conditions of the time, and the racism that existed in Canada during that time period. The influence from Nazi Germany awakened the feelings of anti-Semitism that laid dormant in most Gentile Canadians during the time period. The common people were really susceptible to influence from Nazi Germany and as a result some were convinced by Swastika clubs and other racist organizations that Jews were a problem. The poor economic conditions of the time resulted in hatred towards not only Jews, but all immigrants. Jews bore the brunt of this hatred however, due to a concept called economic anti-Semitism, which is when Jews are discriminated against because of the belief that they are rich. Lastly, the inherit anti-Semitism that existed in Canada before the 1930s did not go away, and was evident throughout the 1930s, especially in 1939 with the MS St. Louis. There were Canadian academics that advocated anti-Semitism, and influenced government members. All of these causes contributed to the plight of the Jews in Canada in the 1930s. This anti-Semitism, as well as other forms of racism which were evident in Canada serve as black marks in our history. Canada holds an image worldwide of being an open and accepting country, but this image can be tarnished any day if occurrences such as those in the 1930s happen again. If a country like the Dominican Republic was willing to take in 100,000 Jewish immigrants in 1939, Canada should have been willing to do the same if not more. Today we are accepting, and the days of anti-Semitism are mostly behind us. We take in other cultures with open arms, perhaps it is because we need immigrants to expand our economy and to increase our populations, but the same was true back then. What is different is that we have learned from our past mistakes and have become a nation that is on a higher level than most others in the world. We look past race and culture and are able to accept people into our society of all races and cultures. That is what makes our country great, and to keep it this way we must continue to remain vigilant and understand the causes of events which do not reflect this image in our past.

Bibliography

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2. "Fascists Meet."TIME Magazine, July 18, 1938.

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