Canada was widely acknowledged as the “Land of Opportunities” and “Land of Plenty”, and the country have attracted millions of immigrants throughout history. The 1950s had been the post-war period of World War Two and was a decade of radical changes in Canadians’ lifestyles. After World War Two, Europe became undesirable for people to live in due to massive war losses and damages. On the other side of the world, North America was not affected by any damage from World War II, instead, it benefited from the war as its economy flourished. Positivity spread through most of the country as automobiles, and televisions became a part of Canadians’ lifestyle. In this thriving time period, Canada admitted countless immigrants and refugees from other nations. This second wave of immigrants contributed to Canada’s exponential population increase, alongside baby boomers. Canada was also introduced to many cultures and religions conveyed overseas by newcomers from Asia and Europe. This symbolized the start of Canada’s worldwide recognition of a multi-cultural country. As the coveted land for foreign citizens, Canada did not completely welcome every person who applied for citizenship. Under that desirable façade, the Canadian government somewhat welcomed and admitted immigrants with a comparatively hospitable attitude, however, once the immigrants arrived in Canada, they were left alone by the government to fend for themselves. Similar to the treatment of the government, immigrants were not completely welcomed by the Canadian mainstream society after settling in Canada. The Canadian government exhibited a somewhat warm attitude of welcoming immigrants. The 1950’s immigration movement contributed to the increase of Canadian population, alon... ... middle of paper ... ...aced with unanticipated challenges, such as discrimination and poverty. “Leaving their native countries to avoid the indigence of the aftermath of World War II” was where an irony arises. Even after the immigrants settled in Canada, they encountered obstacles similar to poverty that they could have experienced by staying in their native country; they did not escape the impoverished state they wanted to abscond from. Other than poverty, the Canadian mainstream society was another sign that Canada did not fully welcome immigrants. Discrimination would not have been a problem at the immigrants’ own country, coming to Canada; it became an additional factor that counted as an obstacle for them. It would be fair to say that poverty and discrimination on Canadian immigrants only became more subtle since the 1950s comparing to how immigrants were welcomed to Canada today.
look at the impact of the Second World War on the various aspects of life of the Canadians.
The 1920’s were a period of growth for the world economy as many people experienced great deals of increase with respect wealth as well as technological advancements and electricity, which became crucial living standard in countries such as Canada. A boom in the Canadian economy during this time was a result of middle and lower class families increasing their consumption of mass-produced consumer based items. During this time P.E.I maintained a relatively lower growth percentage then other Canadian Provinces as they experienced less of the economic boom. Those living in P.E.I, or the Islanders, were relatively more prone to hardship as most people located in the province at the time lived strenuous and labour filled lives.
In the year 1957, Canada elected its first Prime minister without English or French root, John Diefenbaker. While growing up in the city of Toronto, because of his German name, he was often teased. [1] He grew up as an outcast, and so he was able to relate to the discrimination and inequality many of the minorities in Canada felt. This essay will attempt to answer the question: To what extent did Prime Minister John Diefenbaker help promote equality to the minority communities. . The minorities in this time period were the women, aboriginals, and immigrants. During his time as the Prime Minister, he was able to help protect the rights of this group because many of their rights were being abused by the society. Diefenbaker also helped the minorities to stand up for themselves and other groups. Diefenbaker was able to bring positive change to the minority communities by making an official Bill of Rights and appointing people of discriminated groups to the parliament while other members did not.
Before the war, Canada’s most important sector in its economy was agriculture. However, this was changing drastically after and during the war as industry began to take over as being more important. Canadian production of war material, food supplies, and raw materials had been crucial during the war. After the war, it was only natural that big investments were being made in mining, production, transportation, and services industries. Canadian cities were becoming very important contributors to the economy. This was also bringing in waves of post-war immigration, the backbone of Canada’s multicultural society we know today.
Canada’s immigration wasn’t fair at the start of the century. Immigrants and refugees weren’t allowed in Canada. Many restrictions were placed to prevent immigrants to come to Canada. Starting from when the immigration policy of Canada was made “colour-blind” in 1967, Canada’s immigrants started to come from all over the world, especially from Asia. The allowance of more immigrants as a result of the change of immigration policy in 1967 caused Canada’s immigration policy to get fairer.
The discrimination suffered by the “ethnic Canadians” increased during the war was inflicted by both society and the government. An example of the discrimination suffered by “ethnic Canadians” is Sarah Mann, a Canadian-German living though World War 1. Before the people of the town knew she was of German descent, she lived a normal life. But, that all changed when they found out; they vandalized her house by breaking the windows, painting harsh words in red paint or blood, which is overall person to person discrimination. However, throughout the war, it was not just the Canadian-Germans who suffered from discrimination, all ethnicities either than English-Canadian or French-Canadian. Also, they did not only receive discrimination through vandalism, and other person to person discrimination, “ethnic Canadians” faced discrimination by the Canadian government. The governments’ discrimination was caused by the pressure of frightened public experiencing panic because of the Great War. Therefore, the government took action by passing the Wartime Elections Act and the Wartime Measures Act. The Wartime Elections act meant the “ethnic Canadians” would lose their right to vote. The “ethnic Canadians” would also be put into concentration camps or have to register to the police on a regular basis. The historical significance...
During the 1950’s, Canada experienced numerous scenarios which sparked its citizens to be proud. These events included the teenage outbreak, a rise in consumerism and the sudden growth in population. The teenagers were a huge deal in the development of Canada. Teenagers wanted to differentiate themselves from adults and the rest of society (Armstrong et al. 134). Teenagers dressed themselves different along with acting different as well. (Armstrong et al. 135). The new products were being created and sold through the process of consumerism. The new technologies helped shape the look of the new Canadian culture (Bain et al. 219).Lastly, the sudden growth in population was the “baby boom”. The baby boom was a period after WW2 in which babies
The economic progress Canada made after the war lead to the growth of the country. New industries emerged from innovations of products like automobiles, radios, television, digital computers and electric typewriters (Aitken et al., 315). Canadians quickly adapted back to the “buy now, pay later” strategy rather than careful budgeting during the Great Depression (Liverant). Almost everything that Canadians did was influenced from new inventions; television was the most influential. Canadians conversations, humour, and lifestyle were influenced from television (Aitken et al., 315). Trade relations between the United States and Canada had become more efficient due to the St. Lawrence Seaway. The mass development of the St. Lawrence Seaway, in 1954, was to provide a large wate...
A second limitation of white settler society construct that Stasiulus and Jhappan outline is that fact that settlement and immigration in Canada was considerably more ethnically and racially diverse than the white British settler agenda suggested. Indeed, it was this diversity which compelled the conscious construction of a racial/ethnic hierarchy. What was soon implemented was a ‘white Canada’ immigration policy that was designed to aggressively recruit what was considered the ‘best classes’ of British men and women. Non-European immigrants would be excluded unless their cheap labor was needed, in which case they could be granted lesser access to settlers and citizens’ rights.
...Coast of Canada gave a great deal of their life’s energy to the building of the infrastructure of Canada. All of the early pioneers came to Canada prepared to work hard in order to send money back home to support their families and to build new lives in Canada. In many cases, this was a long and lonely sacrifice and few experienced support from the white settlers or received protection from the government. In almost every situation, the Asians were paid less than the whites and had no rights or privileges in the new country. Little by little, they were denied until eventually, immigration was rejected altogether separating families and leaving individual alienated from their loved ones. Thousands of men and women sacrificed and endured a great deal of pain in order to be accepted as citizens of Canada. Their stories are a vital part of the history of the West.
In this day and age, Canada has been known to welcome immigrants with open arms. Yet, from 1815 to 1914 Canada wasn’t inviting immigrants of all ethnic, social and racial foundations, or those who were disabled. The immigration act publicly stated this “No immigrant shall be permitted to land in Canada, who is... an idiot, or an epileptic, or who is insane, or has had an attack of insanity within five years; nor shall any immigrant be so landed who is deaf or dumb [unable to speak], or dumb, blind or infirm; ... afflicted with a loathsome disease or with a disease which is contagious or infectious and which may become dangerous to the public health; ... a pauper, or destitute, or professional beggar, or vagrant, or who is likely to become a
In Canada, over 400,000 babies were born annually from 1945 to 1965, which increased Canada’s population rate by 20% (“Canadian”). This period in Canadian history occurred after the Second World War when millions of men returned home to their families or immigrated to other countries with their war brides. Some ended up settling in Canada which dramatically increased the birth rate; their experience and survival of the war caused them to realize how important life is, instigating them to have as many children as they can support bringing about the group of people now referred to as the Baby Boom Generation. The baby boom generation significantly impacted Canada as it helped the young country to recover from the devastating Great Depression. Indeed, the baby boom generation had a positive contribution to Canadian society during the 1950s because it changed the face of Canada in the international stage, increased the Canadian living standard, and established and developed the suburban areas.
Canadians were frustrating, wonderful, and hard. Soldiers returning from the war expected jobs, but were faced with unemployment, inflation and strikes. Inflation had doubled the cost of living where wages had not and those fortunate to be employed still faced immense financial difficulty. Many people joined unions for better pay and working conditions, 1919 saw the most strikes at a staggering three hundred and six, people were angry and discontented. The 1920s were a time of crime corruption and extreme poverty, yet by mid era difficult conditions began to improve. Foreign investors gained confidence in Canada and as a result new industries were developed, The twenties really did 'roar' and with this boom of change Canada underwent the transformation that was the gateway to the future.
And to enter you would either have to be a farmer, british, or American, but that all changed by 1952, when the government brought in a new immigration act which accepted all races, religion, beliefs and cultures to enter into their country. As you know, once you settle into a new country, it is customary to start a life which means, having a family, a job and a home. But during the war, it prevented many Canadians form having a child since there were limited jobs and homes, which made it hard to provide an income to support their family. But after the war had ended, everything went suddenly right. Thousands of young men returned home to return back to their jobs and start a family. By 1950, its population went up by nearly 30% due to young people having a lot of babies which resulted in the “Baby Boom”. As new young families began to emerge, they started purchasing cars, homes and furniture and things they have ever wanted but could not during the war. Companies started manufacturing family necessities and people who needed jobs could come and help manufacture these products, and the baby boom was one of Canada’s producers that accelerated
Canadians proudly boast of our multicultural society made up of many different religions and cultures. Many immigrants to Canada find themselves adapting to the ways of white-Canadian society for different reasons and with different consequences. In the short stories “Growing Up Native” by Carol Geddes and “I’m a Banana and Proud of It” by Wayson Choy, we see that the causes of the assimilation into white English culture are different, but have similar negative effects on their sense of belonging.