War World II

War World II Life In Canada 1939-1945 At War Again      Most Canadians understood and believed in the purpose of WWII but were not happy to be at war again WWII ended the suffering of the Great Depression but it brought different hardships Men and women in the armed forces were in danger Family and friends at home worried about their safety Lack of supplies for both the armed forces and civilians Governing Canada        Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King set up new departments to handle new challenges associated with going to war: Producing materials Finding the money to pay for war Setting up new factories and keeping factories working Recruiting and training armed forces Managing information that was given to citizens Uniting the country behind the war effort Producing Materials  Exportation of many products increased: – – – – – – – – – Wheat Automobiles Pulp and Paper Meats Aluminum Fish Lumber Fishery products Milk products and eggs  Value rose steadily Producing Materials   126, 000 men and women built ships in the yards from Nova Scotia to British Columbia Canada’s Production record – – – – – – – – Aircraft 16,000 Rifles 900,000 Military vehicles 815,000 Merchant ships 410 Landing craft 3,302 Navy Tugs 6,500 Escort Ships 487 Machine guns 244,000  Made uniforms Challenges     Finding the money to buy things such as munitions, food, uniforms, tanks, planes, fuel and ships People serving in the armed forces also needed to be paid Income tax – helped pay for some of the war effort Victory Bonds – like a loan; Canadians bought these bonds and after the war cashed them in at a profit War Industry      Keeping the factories going – WW2 ended unemployment and the Depression King set up a team of officials to tell factory owners what they must manufacture Crown corporations - companies owned by the government purpose was to manufacture war materials – car factories now made trucks and tanks By the end of the war, more than a million Canadians were working in war plants As the demand for labour increased, wages went up - and so did prices – King set up measures to control both Rationing    Rationing – limited the amount of sugar, tea coffee, butter, meat, alcohol, gas and tires the public could buy Ration Book was issued to each member of the family When a rationed product, such as sugar, or tea was purchased, the appropriate stamp was removed from the book by the storekeeper. Wartime Canada  Price Controls – Good, rentals, electricity, gas, steam heat, and water, telegraph and telephone services  Housing Problem – Cramped – No privacy – Prefabricated homes – financed by the Federal government and built by Wartime Housing Limited Collections  Collections – – – – – – Bones Rags and old clothing Metal scrap Paper Glass Rubber    Gas rationed by use or occupation Violators of the price ceilings and rationing were fined heavily Urged to save metal paper glass rubber and rags so that these could be used by factories Telling the Story of War  Photographs – Army photography units took most of the pictures that were printed in newspapers, magazines and propaganda literature   Official war artists Interviews – Many soldiers complained that journalists often wrote stories of the battle without ever visiting the front lines or interviewing those who did the actual fighting  Briefings – Information regarding the progress of the battle were given to reporters and in turn would ask questions   Newspapers Radios Propaganda     Government needed to keep Canadians spirits high Duty to spread news that helped people feel good about Canada’s war effort Important to control information and tell the story of the war the way they wanted it told Government produce posters and advertisements to persuade people to volunteer for the armed forces or to help in other ways Wartime Information Board Created by the King government  Wrote stories and provided information and photographs to newspaper and magazines  Explained how well Canadian forces were doing  Even comic books carried the message that Canadians must pull together to fight the enemy  Censorship     To make sure information about the war effort wouldn’t fall into enemy hands Approved speeches that were broadcasted Military censors read all letters written by members of the armed forces to make sure they contained no information that could help the enemy; letters written to soldiers who were in POW camps Stories written in the newspaper and magazines Conscription  1940 King’s government passed the National Resources Mobilization Act     As time went on, they needed more men than they had volunteers 1942 King held a special vote on Conscription, a Plebiscite – a direct vote on an issue of major national importance Canadians were asked if they were in favour of releasing the government from its pledge that it would not introduce conscription for overseas service 79% of English-speaking Canadians said YES and 85% of French-speaking said NO – Canada was divided – Men were conscripted but promised that they would be required only to defend Canada – NOT overseas – The term they had to serve was extended several times Conscription Continued…      Opposition was strongest in Quebec, believed that Canadians should not be forced to fight In other some provinces the objection was much higher – New Brunswick and Alberta Many aboriginals opposed conscription – believe no one should be forced to fight, especially those who did not even have the right to vote on the issue 1944 – King was forced to act – ordered 16,000 of them to go. 13,000 were actually sent overseas and about 2,500 reached the front lines Women at War & Work Served as nurses behind the front lines as well as an active part of the armed forces  The Canadian army, air force and navy created women’s divisions – totaled 50,000 in uniform and 4500 in medical services  Women were urged to fill the jobs that had been left empty by men who signed up for the armed forces  Role of Women Continued…      Also fill new jobs in the war industries 25,000 in aircraft factories 250,000 in munitions factories, shipyards and construction sites 800,000 worked on Canadian farms – harvested crops, fixed machinery, operated households and cared for children Salaries for women rose significantly during this time – average weekly wage was $31.00 – double what women had earned before the war Volunteers      Many Canadians who were too old or too young or not physically fit to join the armed forces volunteered to do jobs at home 33,000 volunteers on the east and west joined the Aircraft Detection Corps – watch for enemy aircraft Knitted socks, sweaters and other clothing for troops overseas Donations and bought war bonds to raise money for the war effort Women’s Volunteer Service – ran nurseries for the children of women who worked in war industries Young People  Groups across Canada who contributed to the comfort of men overseas Wrote letters to boost morale Recycling drives – Paper – Collect scrap material – Ex. Knitting clubs and sending the clothing to the troops     Cadet training was mandatory for boys in many high schools across Canada Ontario Farm Service Force War Measures Act  Allowed the government to suspend Canadian rights when there was a National emergency – Pass censorship laws, control transportation and production  Defined anyone who had immigrated from Italy or Germany as an ‘Enemy Alien’ – required to register with the RCMP and report to the police every month Japanese Canadians      Before WW2 – were barred from voting and were not allowed to enter certain professions or serve in the armed forces Most people of Japanese decent in Canada lived in British Columbia Many owned small boats and fished for salmon along the coast; worked in fish canneries; owned small plots of land where they grew fruits and vegetables When Japan attacked Pearl Harbour things became even worse Many Canadians feared that they remained loyal to Japan       Consequences: Fired from jobs Possessions were seized Registered all people of Japanese descent and required all Japanese Canadians to carry registration cards with their thumbprint and photograph. Fishing boats were impounded and those in the fishing industry were the first to be evacuated Japanese-language schools and newspapers were shut down Timeline      Jan. 14, 1942 – all male Japanese Canadians between the ages of 18-45 were shipped to camps in British Columbia Feb. 26, 1942 – the rest of British Columbia’s Japanese Canadians were sent to camps Nearly 22,000 Japanese Canadians were forced to leave the West Coast Families were separated, homes and property were seized and sold Not until 1988 did the government apologize and offered to compensate the survivors Aboriginal People      Aboriginal people of military age signed up at about the same rates as other Canadians Joined the army because the air force and the navy would not accept recruits who were not of ‘the white race’ Raises money and worked in factories and shipyards Produced extra food for the armed forces Allowed the use of reserve land for airports, rifle ranges and defense posts Black Canadians Found it harder to enlist and were rarely promoted  Men’s Brotherhood - prepared Christmas boxes and sent them to troops overseas  Women organized drives urging people to buy war bonds; sewing circles that made clothes for refugees and volunteered with the Red Cross  Worked in war industries  Chinese Canadians    Few were allowed to join the armed forces until 1944 when Canada needed more troops Despite discrimination they supported the war effort Operation Oblivion – Chinese Canadian volunteers with a secret mission to help Chinese troops fight the Japanese invaders – cancelled and sent to Borneo and given little chance of surviving – all returned and four awarded medals Outcome 1941 – 11.5 million – mostly in cities and towns  Ten Year Later – 14 million and most in Urban areas  Canada would emerge as a stronger, more prosperous and more independent country with a a greater awareness of human rights 