Chinese-Canadian War Veterans

created by achan

(person) by achan (1.6 mon) (print) ? (I like it!) 1 C! Thu Nov 09 2000 at 20:50:34

In the spirit of Remembrance Day

I was fortunate enough to have been born in the '80s after most if not all of the discriminatory laws had been repealed. Many Chinese Canadians were not so fortunate. For several years Chinese Canadians struggled in a country with laws targeted specifically at them.

Examples:

1892 - BC Qualifications of Voters Act denies Chinese and First Nations people the right to vote
1885 - A head tax of 50$ is imposed on Chinese Immigrants (after the CPR is completed)
1900 - Head tax is changed to 100$ effective 1902
1903 - Head tax is increased again to 500$
1923 - Chinese Immigration Act excludes Chinese people from coming to Canada, a legislation that prevented Chinese men from bringing their Wives and families back with them
...

In 1920 twelve Chinese Canadian veterans of WWI were granted the right to vote. This was the inspiration for a 1939 movement encouraging Chinese Canadian men to enlist for WWII. For the first few years of the war Chinese Canadians were not allowed to enlist, their applications were rejected by the Armed Forces. Despite rejections the men continued to volunteer believing that if they risked/sacrificed their lives for Canada they and their descendants would finally be allowed to be come citizens and granted suffrage. Eventually due to a shortage of other volunteers the Canadian military was forced to accept applications from the Chinese

In 1945 the WWII veterans who were already citizens were granted to right to vote. It was not until 1967 that the Immigration Act gave the Chinese the same rights as immigrants from any other country.

The Chinese were definitely not the only people persecuted in Canada some others are: The First Nations, Japanese Canadian Internment, Doukhobors, and Acadians.

Source for dates: www.ccnc.ca/toronto/history/timeline.html

printable version
chaos

Doukhobor	First Nations	Japanese Canadian Internment in World War II	Acadians
Sending home Japanese Canadians after WWII	Remembrance Day	Johnny Canuck, the Fightin' Canadian	CPR
Yankee Pot Roast	Royal Canadian Mounted Police	Panic Room	Canadian
Matthew Coon Come	ta	bec de corbin	Arthur Waley
Behold

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