About excuses for internment

The Ukrainian Weekly
28 May 1989

Dear Editor:

In regard to the "Internment of Ukrainian Canadians" (April 9), the author seems to say that the WASP(anglo) Canadian government's mistreatment of Ukrainian Canadians by internment in concentration camps and otherwise was justified because:

• 1. Some Ukrainian Canadians were not classified as enemy aliens.

• 2. The Ukrainian Canadians that were mistreated did not have to serve in the military.

• 3. Only 70,000 Ukrainian Canadians were subject to mistreatment.

• 4. Most of the Ukrainian Canadians interned in concentration camps were young.

• 5. Most of the Ukrainian Canadians interned in concentration camps were propertyless.

• 6. Most of the Ukrainian Canadians interned in concentration camps were not naturalized citizens, merely legal immigrants to Canada.

• 7. Municipal councils said Ukrainian Canadians were a threat to civil order.

• 8. Ukrainian Canadians were unlettered.

• 9. Ukrainians who migrated to Canada were of peasant stock.

• 10. The concentration camps where Ukrainian Canadians were interned were located in the parts of Canada where Ukrainian Canadians were pioneers.

• 11. Some Ukrainian Canadians interned in concentration camps were not treated roughly.

• 12. Abuse and mistreatment of Ukrainian Canadians occurred in some of the concentration camps only.

• 13. Some Ukrainian Canadians interned in concentration camps said they seldom worked hard.

• 14. Ukrainian Canadians who were not interned in concentration camps were also mistreated and injured.

• 15. Most of the Ukrainian Canadians interned in concentration camps were males.

• 16. The Ukrainian Canadians interned in concentration camps could go where they wanted when they were released.

• 17. While some Ukrainian Canadians were interned in concentration camps, other Ukrainian Canadians became prosperous.

The above list does not exhaust the multitude of excuses by which the author justifies the mistreatment of Ukrainian Canadians, but is representative.

The author fails to inform your readers that the lack of precise statistics results from the destruction of the records in the 1950s by the government. The author also fails to advise your readers that in January 1915, the British Foreign Office advised the government that "Ruthenians" (i.e. Ukrainians) should be treated as friendly aliens.

The material cited demonstrates clearly that the mistreatment of Ukrainian Canadians during 19141920 was the result of malice and bigotry.

All Ukrainian Canadians should support the Ukrainian Canadian Committee Civil Liberties Commission's requests to the federal government for a parliamentary resolution acknowledging the wrongs, restoration and marking of sites as national historic monuments, and funding of research and publication of this forgotten part of Canadian history by writing the prime minister and their member of parliament.

E.E. Forbes Mitchell

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Document URL: http://www.infoukes.com/history/internment/booklet02/doc-043.html

Copyright © 1994 Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association

Copyright © 1994 Lubomyr Luciuk

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Originally Composed: Sunday September 22nd 1996.
Date last modified: Thursday October 30th 1997.