CANADA – 1930’s
CHC2P1 – MISS VUONG
AGENDA
1. Learning Outcomes
2. Key Political Figures continued…
3. Depression Conditions (Relief Camps)
4. Onto Ottawa Trek
5. News Article
Learning Outcomes
Students will be able to…
1. Identify key political figures of the Depression (and
their contributions)
2. Recognize the purpose and significance of relief
camps
3. Relate the Onto Ottawa Trek to present day
examples
Key Political Figures (continued…)
PRIME MINISTER MACKENZIE KING
An election must be called at least every five years
in Canada, and Mackenzie King decided to call the
election in 1930. King believed that the economic
depression was a temporary happening. He thought
that the economy would improve by itself, so he did
little.
Key Political Figures (continued…)
KING AND THE 1930 ELECTION
Mackenzie King kept the federal budget balanced. When you
keep your personal budget balanced, it means that you do
not spend more than you take in, for example, from wages,
allowance or investments. In other words, you do not go into
debt.
King (and many others) thought it would be wrong for the
country of Canada to go into debt, so he did not spend
money to help industries that were in trouble, or to help the
workers who were unemployed.
Key Political Figures (continued…)
KING AND THE 1930 ELECTION
In a 1930 speech that landed him in trouble, King
said that he would not give “a five-cent piece”
(nickel) to any provincial Conservative government
to help out with unemployment.
For many voters, Mackenzie King did not offer
solutions to the problems of the Depression.
Key Political Figures (continued…)
PRIME MINISTER R. B. BENNETT
After Arthur Meighen’s loss in the 1926 election, the
Conservative Party selected a Calgary millionaire named
Richard Bedford (R. B.) Bennett as their new leader.
Bennett said that he would use tariffs “to blast a way
into the markets” of the world. What he meant was that
he would raise tariffs against any country that increased
tariffs against Canada. He thought that his threat would
force countries to trade more with Canada.
Key Political Figures (continued…)
PRIME MINISTER R. B. BENNETT
In the 1930 election campaign, Bennett also promised
to give money to the provinces, so that they could help
the unemployed. Bennett was energetic, confident, and
was a good speaker on radio.
In the July, 1930 election, Bennett and the
Conservatives won 137 seats in Parliament while King
and the Liberals won only 88.
Key Political Figures (continued…)
PRIME MINISTER R. B. BENNETT
Money, Money, Money!
Like William Lyon Mackenzie King, R. B. Bennett was
concerned about keeping a balanced budget. He did
not want the country to go into debt by borrowing
money for large government projects (such as
roads, parks and bridges) to put the unemployed
back to work.
Key Political Figures (continued…)
PRIME MINISTER R. B. BENNETT
"As soon as I became Prime Minister in 1930, I sent
$20 million to the provinces to help those out of
work. I was at my desk until late each evening,
answering letters sent to me by ordinary Canadians.
I was very touched by their stories of hardship. Out
of my own pocket, I sent them money - in total,
$25,000 a year."
Key Political Figures (continued…)
PRIME MINISTER R. B. BENNETT
This approach was being tried in the United States by
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in his program
called the "New Deal". The idea was that, if the
unemployed went back to work (on government
projects), they would receive money. With this money
they would buy clothes, food, and houses. In turn, the
people who produced these things would now be called
back to work. In this manner, a positive “multiplier
effect” would kick into action.
Key Political Figures (continued…)
PRIME MINISTER R. B. BENNETT
"I believed in hard work. Working 16 hours a day, six
days a week, was not unusual for me. Work made
me a millionaire, and work made me Prime Minister
of Canada. I did not drink alcohol, smoke cigarettes,
or gamble. I did eat a good deal - five meals a day. I
was a life-long bachelor."
Key Political Figures (continued…)
PRIME MINISTER R. B. BENNETT
Bennett provided some help, or “relief”, for the
unemployed. Money for poor families was provided by
city governments at welfare offices. Sometimes, they
almost had to beg for this money. Single unemployed
men were expected to go to relief camps. They worked
44 hours a week on a government project and were paid
20 cents a day with an additional 2 cent allowance for
tobacco. There were plenty of complaints about the
strict discipline and the food.
Key Political Figures (continued…)
PRIME MINISTER R. B. BENNETT
"Frustration set in because I was not able to solve the
Depression. I raised tariffs, but trade did not increase.
Jobs continued to disappear. Crops continued to fail.
Factories continued to close. People thought I was
arrogant and cold-hearted. Frankly, I was not amused
when people called their horse-pulled cars 'Bennett
buggies' and called newspapers 'Bennett blankets'. I did
my very best in my five years as Prime Minister."
Key Political Figures (continued…)
Key Political Figures (continued…)
Key Political Figures (continued…)
KING COMES BACK
In 1935, Bennett tried to copy the "New Deal" of US
President Roosevelt, but his effort was too little, too
late. In the election of that year, the Canadian
people kicked out the unpopular Bennett and
brought back William Lyon Mackenzie King and the
Liberals.
Key Political Figures (continued…)
KING COMES BACK
King was able to reduce tariffs somewhat, but he was
unable to end the Depression. It was the increased
spending associated with Canada’s entry into World War
II in 1939 that finally stopped unemployment and the
economic slump.
King won the 1940 election (and another in 1945) and
stayed on as Prime Minister until 1948.
Political Parties
KING COMES BACK
King was able to reduce tariffs somewhat, but he was
unable to end the Depression. It was the increased
spending associated with Canada’s entry into World War
II in 1939 that finally stopped unemployment and the
economic slump.
King won the 1940 election (and another in 1945) and
stayed on as Prime Minister until 1948.
Political Parties
Some groups decided to protest by forming new political parties. Three new
political parties that formed in the Depression were:
1. The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF)
2. The Social Credit Party
3. The Union Nationale Party
Political Parties
1. The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF)
In 1933, farmer and labour organizations came together to create
the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation in Regina. The CCF
saw the institution of capitalism, or free enterprise, as the root
cause of the Great Depression.
Capitalism is a system in which banks, factories, and land are
privately owned. In the eyes of the CCF, capitalism favoured the rich
over the poor in an unfair way. The CCF proposed democratic
socialism. In this system, the rich are pulled down and the poor are
raised up by government programs. It is democratic, because
people are invited to vote in favour of these programs.
Political Parties
1. The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF)
Among other things, the CCF called for a minimum wage, unemployment insurance,
old age pensions, child support payments, and government medical care. Each of
these programs would help the weaker members of society. Each of these programs
would, in part at least, be funded by the stronger members of society. Therefore,
each of these programs could be called “socialist”.
Some Canadians confused the CCF with communism, and thus rejected the party.
Communists also believe in achieving more equality in society, but are willing to use
undemocratic means, such as violence, terror, and intimidation, to achieve this
goal. The CCF always spoke in favour of democracy, individual freedom, and
individual rights.
Over the years, most of the socialist proposals presented by the CCF in 1933 were
adopted by various Canadian governments.
Political Parties
1. The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF)
Among other things, the CCF called for a minimum wage, unemployment insurance,
old age pensions, child support payments, and government medical care. Each of
these programs would help the weaker members of society. Each of these programs
would, in part at least, be funded by the stronger members of society. Therefore,
each of these programs could be called “socialist”.
Some Canadians confused the CCF with communism, and thus rejected the party.
Communists also believe in achieving more equality in society, but are willing to use
undemocratic means, such as violence, terror, and intimidation, to achieve this
goal. The CCF always spoke in favour of democracy, individual freedom, and
individual rights.
Over the years, most of the socialist proposals presented by the CCF in 1933 were
adopted by various Canadian governments.
Political Parties
2. THE SOCIAL CREDIT PARTY
William Aberhart, a Calgary, Alberta high school principal, was the creator
of the Social Credit Party. He believed that the ongoing cause of the
Depression was that people did not have enough money to buy products.
His solution to the lack of buying power was to give each adult in Alberta a
monthly cheque, or “social credit”, of $25. "Bible Bill" Aberhart was well
known in Alberta because he preached on a radio program. In the 1935
provincial election, the newly created Social Credit Party won, and
Aberhart became the Premier of Alberta.
Political Parties
2. THE SOCIAL CREDIT PARTY
Once in power, Aberhart attempted to bring in his $25 payment idea.
However, the courts ruled that only the federal government could issue
money, and thus Aberhart’s idea was declared illegal, yet the Social Credit
Party struck a chord with Alberta voters, and it governed the province until
1971. Despite its name and its $25 payment idea, Social Credit should not
be considered a socialist party. For the most part, the party favoured free
enterprise capitalism.
Political Parties
3. THE UNION NATIONALE PARTY
During the Depression years in Quebec, the anger of the French-speaking
unemployed workers turned against the businesses that were owned by
English-speaking Canadians and Americans.
Political Parties
3. THE UNION NATIONALE PARTY
Maurice Duplessis, a lawyer and life-long bachelor, helped to form the
Union Nationale Party as an expression of Quebec nationalism. This meant
that the Union Nationale strongly defended the French language, culture,
and religion against the economic strength of the English in the province of
Quebec.
The Union Nationale, with Duplessis as leader, rode to power in Quebec in
1936 and, with the exception of 5 years, they stayed in power until 1959.
Onto Ottawa Trek
In 1932, the Federal Government set up relief camps for the unemployed,
where single, homeless men were given shelter, food, clothing and paid 20
cents per day for 44 hours of public work per week, all under the direction
of the Ministry of National Defence in cooperation with the Labour
Department. The men who chose to move into these camps did so of their
own free choice.
Onto Ottawa Trek
Dissatisfied with their living and working conditions, 1,500 men left the
relief camps in British Columbia to go on strike in April 1935 and head
toward Vancouver, alleging that the relief camps offered them no viable
future. Mayor McGeer told the strikers that the Municipal Council had
limited powers and therefore could not do anything about their claims.
Instead, he offered them an alternative: to return to the camps and to
finance a delegation to send to Ottawa in order to discuss their demands,
but the strikers refused.
Onto Ottawa Trek
On June 3rd and 4th, after seeing the government's indifference to their
plight, more than 1,000 men decided to go to Ottawa to present their
grievances, hoping to create awareness for their cause. They set out first
by train, but after receiving a decree from Prime Minister Bennett, they
were denied access to the train cars. Eight men undertook the walk to
Ottawa to argue their case, while 2,000 others settled in Regina, where
they were fed and lodged by private citizens while being sustained by the
government of Saskatchewan.
Onto Ottawa Trek
The Prime Minister refused the delegation's demands and the eight
returned to join the Regina group. On July 1st, 1935 they organized a
public protest that was broken up by police squads who came to arrest
Arthur Evans and a number of other speakers. This act prompted a riot,
with the marchers throwing stones at the police officers. Two people died
in the clashes, including a local constable; dozens of people were injured;
and 130 were arrested.
Onto Ottawa Trek
A few days later the marchers returned to their camps, with funds from
the government of Saskatchewan so that they could travel by train. The
failure of the "On to Ottawa" Trek was a tough blow for the career of
Prime Minister Bennett, who was widely criticized for his handling of the
situation.