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Woman suffrage 1920s and 30s
During the early 1900s women were seen as too emotional, too innocent for politics, that it would cause arguments in the home, or that they would just vote the same way as their husbands. The wartime elections act in 1917 opened the door to woman's suffrage. Led by women named Nellie McClung, Henrietta Muir Edwards, Louise McKinney, and Emily Murphy, who were also known as the Famous Five, women finally got the right to vote in most Provinces in 1918. Suffrage continued until well into the 1930s -
The Spanish Flu 1918-1919
The Spanish Flu started in Canada in 1918, it was carried home by soldiers returning from Europe. The parades and crowds celebrating the end of the war only increased the speed at with it was spreading. The same thing happened in many other countries, becoming a global pandemic. Some historians believe that 50 million people, including 50,000 Canadians, died. -
Prohibition 1918-1921
In the early 20th century, alcohol was blamed for many social problems, and because of this a movement started to make people stop drinking. In 1918 this movement got what they wanted, alcohol was illegal in Canada under prohibition. Many people did not like prohibition however, and the illegal alcohol trade flourished. Every year that prohibition remained, the people that alcohol would generate up to 45 million dollars in sales. -
Winnipeg General Strike 1919
On May 1, 1919, Members of Winnipeg's building trade unions went on strike. On May 15, the Winnipeg Trades and Labor Council called for a city wide strike in support of the striking workers. Within days the number of people striking had risen to 30,000. In the end, even though some people had been arrested and even injured, the strike still did not bring about the changes that the strikers wanted. -
Immigration Policies 1920s-30s
Many people immigrated to Canada over the 1920s and 30s from all over the world. However, after World War One, and after World War Two, many Canadians didn't like the idea of new people coming into the country from places like Germany or Japan. Most immigrants were from the UK or other friendly European countries. Canada also did not want anyone who held socialist or communist beliefs. -
Residential Schools 1923-1939
Residential schools were introduced to "Get rid of the Indian problem" by assimilating First Nations children and "civilizing" them. By 1930, 80 schools were running across Canada, and over the years that these schools ran, about 150,000 children attended these schools. Being separated from their families was extremely hard on the children, many of whom would be unable to speak their native language by the end of the schooling. the last residential school was shut down for the final time in 1996 -
Xenophobia 1923-1939
The government of Canada wanted to attract immigrants from friendly Europian countries, such as the UK, and not other people such as Chinese people. For years Chinese immigrants had to pay a head tax, and in 1923 the Chinese Immigration Act was passed. This act barred nearly all Chinese immigrants, and made it so that workers in Canada who were Chinese could not even bring their wives to Canada. In fact, It was so bad that between 1923 and 1927 fewer than 50 Chinese immigrants were allowed in. -
The Persons Case 1927-1929
Five women in particular were fighting for a women on the senate, these women were called the Famous Five. In 1927 the Famous Five sent a petition to Ottawa asking if the term "persons" included women in 1927, because women were not "persons" they could not be elected. The court decided that they were persons when they did something illegal, but not if they wanted something. This led the famous Five to go to the London court, who agreed with them and made women "persons" in 1929. -
Pentions 1927
By the 1920s people were living longer, but that meant that many old people were also living in poverty. Some people, like veterans with disabilities, or widows of soldiers killed in WW1 received small government pensions. However, there was none for the average elderly person. This changed in 1927 when the Old Age Pensions Act was passed. It gave the elderly 20$ a month, but they had to be British citizens over 70 years, had lived in Canada for 20, and make less than $365 dollars a year. -
Stock Market Crash 1929
The Great Depression had many causes, but the one that most historians agree was the most immediate is the stock market crash. In September 1929 people had begun to sell their stocks, assured by financial experts and politicians that they were "fundamentally sound". This was not the case however and on October 4 the Toronto stock exchange lost 200million dollars, despite that people kept selling. Until October 28, when the Toronto stock exchange fell be a million dollars a minute. -
Child Labor Laws 1929
Various forms of child labor existed in Canada, ever since the first Europeans arrived. However, in the 1920s attitudes were beginning to change towards child labor. By 1929 most Canadian provinces had banned children under 14 from working in factories and mines. In 1911, only 63 percent of 14-year-olds went to school, by 1931 it was 81 percent. -
The Rise of Fascism 1920s-1930s
After WW1 Germany had to pay reparations which they could not afford, forcing them to print money, which led to hyperinflation. During the great depression this only became worse, Germany wanted a change. In 1920 Hitler joined a small political party called the Nationalist Socialist German Workers Party, AKA, Nazis. Hitler led this party to win the 1933 election. He then joined with smaller parties and made himself chancellor. once in power he took over the nation and gave himself full control. -
Crop Failure 1936
One of the main crops in the Prairies was wheat, especially in Saskatchewan. During WW1 the prices of grain had risen to $2.37 a bushel, but by 1932 it was down to 35 cents. As early as 1928 there was less rainfall in the prairies, and in July 1936, after a particularly cold winter, temperatures climbed over 38 degrees C and no rain fell. This created dust storms which destroyed the crops that blew down almost anything in their way, and after all that grasshoppers ate everything remaining. -
Bombardier Inc. 1937
Bombardier is known today for aircrafts and subway systems. However, it all started with Joseph-Armand Bombardier, who wanted to make travelling in the snow easier. During the 20s and 30s he refined his ideas until 1937, when the first 7 snowmobiles emerged from his small factory in his hometown. They were an instant hit, and he started manufactoring the B7, his first production snowmobile. Today, Bombardier Inc. is worth billions of dollars, and recognized world wide. -
The St. Louis 1939
In 1939 a passenger liner St. Louis was carrying more than 900 Jews on board, trying to escape from Germany. It sailed to Canada where it was refused entry, showing the Anti-Semitic views of the upper chambers of the Canadian government. After they were refused in Canada they went to the states, where they were refused. After the states they went to Cuba, where they were also refused. In the end they had to go back to Germany, where many of them died in concentration camps.