A case study in attitudes towards enemy aliens in British Columbia 1914-1919

Field: Social Sciences (Social Sciences)

During World War I changes in attitudes towards German and Austro-Hungarian immigrants developed in British Columbia. This thesis examines in which ways economic, social and political conditions influenced such changes. The immigrant of German origin experienced such a rapid change in his status that German businessmen who had previously been praised and accepted as progressive contributors to the economic and cultural development of the province, had their properties liquidated, their associations banned and their freedom restricted. When Canada entered the war with Great Britain, Germans and Austro-Hungarians became enemy aliens. Mobilization, fear of attack or of sabotage created an atmosphere in which the role of the enemy alien in Canadian life was reevaluated. Government administrators, politicians, workers and various associations raised the issue whether the enemy alien could be allowed to continue to work and live freely without restrictions. Were all people of German origin, including naturalized citizens, a threat to Canada's security? The federal government in the first months of the war answered these questions by formulating a moderate policy. The issue of the enemy alien's status entered a second stage when high unemployment, an intolerable welfare burden and anxiety over the progress of the war heightened resentment against the enemy alien. During the spring of 1915 a growing unanimity of feeling among the various segments of provincial society led to pressure for stricter measures. The internment of enemy aliens, the establishment of prisoner of war labour camps and the extraction of loyalty oaths from all German-Canadians were demanded. A third stage in the transformation of attitudes unfolded in 1918 and 1919 when veterans of the war poured into the province. For the regeneration and reconstruction of post-war Canada, the returned soldiers demanded the exclusion from Canada of immigrants from enemy countries. The war, and the problems it created conditioned the thoughts and feelings of British Columbians. The psychological impact of the war on many of the individuals who suffered personal losses led them to demand harsher measures than the federal government approved. Because of international laws and practical considerations the government hesitated to embark on stricter regulations. Internment of all enemy aliens or conscription of their labour might result in retaliation or unjust treatment of British and Canadian nationals in enemy countries. In 1916 the improvement in the economy created a demand for more labour. At the same time militia authorities were attempting to recruit larger numbers of men for overseas service. Enemy aliens, the federal government argued, were essential to war production and they would perform more effectively in private industry than in labour camps. Practical considerations, then outweighed the increasingly emotional demands of labour, business, community and returned soldiers organizations for the internment, registration and deportation of enemy aliens. However, in the post-war period economic considerations influenced the government to alter its policy. With the cut back in war production and the return of veterans seeking employment the pressure to remove enemy aliens from active participation in Canadian life was revivified. In response to demands from various segments of the British Columbian and Canadian population new immigration and naturalization laws were enacted to prevent former enemy aliens from participating in the new, post-war era in Canada.