The War at Home  War Effort Production – Government spending on the war effort reached 40% of the GNP by 1944, compared to 15% in WWI. – The government used such measures as rationing, compulsory labour arbitration, taxation and war bond sales to finance spending. – Britain and the U.S. were Canada’s main customers of war production. C.D. Howe, Minister of Munitions & Supply

Wartime Production  In 1942, the automotive industry also converted to the war effort.  The production of luxury cars & family sedans was replaced by the production of gun carriers & armored cars.

Wartime Production  Canadian war factories were safe from bombing. Canada became Britain’s chief overseas supplier of war material.  Mutual Aid – The US Lend-Lease Act was extended in the Hyde Park Declaration to cover US parts used in Canadian production Lend-Lease: The US agreed to provide war materials to Allies on deferred payment

Wartime Production  Canada was faced with the challenge of creating - practically from scratch - a strong industrial base to produce weapons for the war effort.  Canada significantly helped the Allied victory in the war.

Canada’s Wartime Production  $11 billion of munitions  1.7 million small arms  43,000 heavy guns  16,000 aircraft  2 million tonnes of explosives  815,000 military vehicles, 50,000 tanks and armoured gun carriers  9,000 boats and ships  Uranium for the “Manhattan Project”

Victory Bonds  Buying Victory Bonds (War Bonds) were essential to the war effort on the home front  Canadians bought bonds they could cash in with interest after the war.

Rationing Government controlled food & products distribution What do you think was rationed? Sugar Coffee Tea Other imported items

Also rationed were items in short supply: gasoline rubber metals

Recycling  People were encouraged not to throw away materials such as metal, rubber, clothes, and food waste  They would be recycled and used in the war effort

Canada’s Home Front: Social and Political Issues  Propaganda  Conscription Crisis  The War Measures Act  Restrictions & Excesses - Japanese Internment Canada and WWII – 37:00 D-Day from SPR – 9:00

Propaganda  The National Film Board (NFB) turned out hundreds of documentaries and short films which were shown all over Canada  Posters and radio messages were everywhere as well  Much propaganda was extremely racist NFB Anti-Japanese Propaganda

The WW II Conscription Crisis  In 1939, Mackenzie King made an election promise that he would not introduce conscription for overseas service.  The following year, King’s government passed the National Resources Mobilization Act (NRMA), which included conscription for home defense only.  Young men were called up for 30 days of training – they were nicknamed “zombies”  In April 1941, call-ups were extended for the duration of the war.

Conscription Crisis  In 1942, in the face of growing casualties overseas, the need for reinforcements grew.  King held a plebiscite (a vote) asking Canadians to release him from his promise of not conscripting for service overseas.  Many Quebeckers saw this request as a betrayal and protests took place

Conscription Crisis  The majority of Canadians (64%) generally supported the idea of compulsory overseas military service.  But 79% of English Canadians voted yes, while 85% of French Canadians voted no.  About 13,000 conscripts were sent overseas but only 2400 reached the front lines before the war ended  A very similar situation to that of WWI

The War Measures Act  The King government revived the War Measures Act of 1914, which gave it enormous powers over the people & industries of Canada.  There were 28 Crown corporations producing munitions, airplanes, uniforms, synthetic rubber & various other essential war products.

The War Measures Act  The government had the power to assign workers to jobs in these industries as the need arose.  Certain products were rationed during the war & strikes & lockouts were replaced with compulsory arbitration

 The War Measures Act gave the government enormous powers over the people of Canada.  This power was used in questionable ways

War Measures Act gave the gov’t many powers:  Censorship, control and suppression of publications & all communications  Arrest, detention, exclusion and deportation  Control of all harbours, ports  Control of all transportation by land, air, water  Control of all trade, exportation, importation, production and manufacture

Wartime Restrictions and Excesses  Internment Camps: types of prisons where enemy aliens such as Japanese and other Canadians were kept during WW2.  Conscientious Objectors: people opposed to war due to religious beliefs (ex. Agnes MacPhail, JS Woodsworth, Quakers, Jehova’s Witnesses).  Blacks: many employers still refused to hire them until protests in Many Quakers refused to fight but volunteered as ambulance drivers

Wartime Restrictions and Excesses  Native Persons: felt determined to get the same rights as other Canadians.  Refugees: Canada took in relatively few of them during the war, especially those facing persecution in Germany. When they did get in, they were often sent to prison or internment camps.

Wartime Restrictions and Excesses  Treatment of Japanese Canadians – After Japan bombed Pearl Harbor in 1941, the Canadian Government ordered all people of Japanese descent to be taken away and placed in internment camps. – In all 22,000 people were affected…most were Canadian citizens. – Their property was seized & sold off cheaply, including 1200 fishing boats in BC.

Wartime Restrictions and Excesses  Treatment of Japanese Canadians – After the war, things did not revert to normal; many could not return to their homes and their right to vote was denied until – Restitution came in 1988, when the Canadian Government apologized and paid each Japanese Canadian still living $21,000. Japanese Internment – 10:00

Other Minority Groups  Until 1942 the government ignored employers’ restrictions on hiring Blacks.  After protests from Black university students & a campaign by the press & the Canadian Jewish Congress, this practice was eventually ended.  Prejudice was also evident with regard to refugees.

Other Minority Groups  Canada made it difficult for Jewish refugees to enter Canada before the war.  As news of concentration & death camps began to reach Canada, there was no change in government policy or in the attitudes of the immigrant branch.  Many of the immigrants who managed to immigrate to Canada were placed in internment camps

End of the War  The war in Europe ended on May 8, 1945, which became known as V-E Day.  The war in the South Pacific ended on August 14, 1945, called V-J Day. It only ended when the U.S. dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan

The Legacy of War  Grim Statistics – The losses Canada had in the war increased patriotism and set the stage for Canada’s role in the world after the war. – It cost Canada $18 billion and created $10 billion in debt. – million worldwide died in battles, concentration camps and at home. The Human Cost of War for Canada EnlistmentFatalities Army730,15922,917 Air Force249,66217,101 Navy106, Total1,090,78242,042

Estimated War Dead – WWII Military + Civilian Casualties Canada42,000 USA400,000 France600,000 Britain390,000 Holland210,000 Poland5,800,000 Germany4,200,000 Japan2,350,000 China10,000,000+ Russia20,000,000+

Legacy of War  War Artists – As in WWI, artists were commissioned to record Canada’s war effort. – Art records more ‘feelings’ than a simple photograph, so this was an important legacy of the war.

The Legacy of War  At the Dawn of a New Age – The seeds were sown for more women’s, aboriginal and other minorities rights. – Unions were given the right to organize and to collective bargaining. – The Federal government organized several new social programs during WW2…and Canadians wanted more.

Legacy of War A New Age in International Affairs: – Europe was the power centre of the world at the beginning of the war; at the end, it was the USA. – The USA and USSR distrusted each other; each felt the other was trying to destabilize the other. This led to a period of espionage, (nuclear) arms buildup and general tension called the Cold War. – Canada’s relationship with the USA became closer. – Canada became known as a middle power.