Canadians on the home Front    

Canadians on the home front •Canadian businesses did well throughout the war as there was high demand for many products •manufacturing munitions became the largest industry and employer in Canada. By 1917, 150 000 people worked in this business and many manufacturers had converted to creating munitions Canadians on the home front

•1914 women who worked, usually had low paying jobs in a few different sectors (teaching, domestic labour, unskilled factory) •With so many men overseas women took over the jobs that were now vacant, taking on more skilled work, higher paying jobs and more responsibility •Women were still paid roughly half a man was for the same job •Without women taking on these roles Canada would not have the success it did supplying and supporting the war effort. Women on the home front

Enemy Aliens •War Measures Act passed October 1914 •allowed the government to pass laws without approval of parliament, imprison whomever without a trial, and tell businesses what they could manufacture or grow •Also allowed the government to label people “Enemy Aliens” •these were people who were from countries Canada was at war with including Germans, Poles, Ukranians, Czechs, Slovaks and Austrians •80 000 people were labelled “Enemy Aliens” •they had to register with police and carry ID badges with them at all times Enemy Aliens

Enemy alien internment •Discrimination towards these people was rampant •people were fired from jobs, businesses and gathering places closed and homes vandalized •you could no longer teach German, and public pressured for those of German descent to be fired from government jobs •More than 8500 men were placed in 24 internment camps across the country •They were forced to build roads and railways, mine and clear land, in Alberta they helped build Banff National Park Enemy alien internment

Propaganda •Canada used propaganda for 4 reasons in WWI •encourage men to enlist •urge Canadians to buy Victory Bonds, to pay for the war •convince Canadians to conserve or ration food, so that troops could have more •urge Canadians to fund the Patriotic Fund, to support families that had men fighting overseas Propaganda

   

•Initially volunteers lined up to go to war, however as more horrible stories filtered back to Canada and the war dragged on longer and longer, less and less men volunteered. •In 1916 PM Borden announced that Canada would have a force of 500 000 troops •this was quite a few men and the pressure to enlist grew stronger Enlistment

•By 1917 volunteers couldn’t keep up with the demand for troops as casualties mounted, meaning troops weren’t being replaced as they fell. •The government decided to pass the Military Service Act which would include conscription (forcing men to join the military) •This split parliament along French and English lines •many French-Canadians did not oppose the war, but held no allegiance to Britain or France •Quebecois heard that they weren’t treated fairly in the military and few volunteered •many English-Canadians couldn’t understand why this occurred and accused the French of not doing their part Conscription crisis

Conscription crisis cont. •Labour groups and farmers were also worried as they didn’t want to lose the labour needed to make their farm or factory work •Conscientious objectors were Canadians who didn’t believe in fighting based on religious and moral grounds. The government had promised the Mennonites and Hutterites they would be exempt from military service but now they were persecuted and jailed if they were conscripted and refused to fight Conscription crisis cont.

•Military Service Act became law on August 29, 2917 •PM Borden asked Wilfred Laurier, the leader of the opposition, to join him in a “Union Government” so that it would pass unanimously, only 9 Liberal members joined the government •Borden called an election for December of 1917 •Conscription became the main issue of the election 1917 Election

•Borden passed the Wartime Elections Act, to help his party win the election •this gave voting rights to women who had relatives fighting overseas, the first time women were allowed to vote in a federal election •took away voting rights from immigrants from “enemy” countries who had become Canadian citizens after 1902 (Mennonites did not regain the vote until 1920) •Borden’s Unionist government won the election with a sizeable majority 1917 election Cont