1939-1952

Lesson 3: DISPOSSESSION

Landscapes of Injustice tells a story of the loss of home. It is about fear, racism, and measures taken in the name of security that made no one safer. It is also about the resilience of Japanese Canadians confronting injustice.

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Viewpoints on Dispossession Activity

Opinions on what to do with Japanese Canadian owned property varied greatly both within and outside government circles. In this activity students learn that there were a number of complex viewpoints behind the decision to forcibly sell Japanese Canadian property. The goals of federal, provincial, and municipal politicians and bureaucrats factored significantly in the evolution of policy.

SUGGESTED TIME: 45 MINUTES

Teaching Instructions

  1. Distribute Handout 3.5 Viewpoints of Dispossession and three memos, Sources 3.6–3.8, authored by different officials working within the federal bureaucracy in the spring of 1942:

    - Have students read the differing opinions of three federal bureaucrats involved in the policy discussion:

    • Undersecretary of State – Henry F. Angus
    • Deputy Minister of Labour – Arthur MacNamara
    • Director of the Vancouver Office of the Custodian – Glenn McPherson

    - Using Handout 3.5 Viewpoints of Dispossession, students complete the chart, noting the different points of view on forced property sales. Students should focus on the following themes as they read each of the source documents: citizenship, democratic values, fairness and fair play, property rights, and civil rights.

  2. Students use the evidence and understandings gathered in the previous activity to participate in a Mock Question Period. Provide students with a copy of Handout 3.6 Mock Question Period. Prior to engaging the students in this activity teachers are advised to introduce the concept of question period as a mechanism through which the opposition parties question the ruling party (the government) on policy decisions. Remind them that the questions must relate to the forced sales of all Japanese Canadian owned property without owner consent or agreement.

    NB: The invocation of the War Measures Act in 1939 gave the federal government the authority to enact legislation without debate in the House of Commons. None of the Orders-in-Council would have been debated in parliament nor would the ministers' responsible be called to account in a question period.

  3. Mock Question Period:

    - Divide the class into four or five groups of students.

    - Assign one group to represent the government of Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King. The other three to four groups are opposition parties but need no official name or party affiliation.

    - All groups will use the information recorded in Handout 3.5, and additional research as directed by the teacher, to prepare for Question Period. The focus of the question period will be the possible shift from a policy of property trustee- ship to one of forced sales.

  4. Review the reverse of Handout 3.6 to assist students with understanding the expectations for the Mock Question Period activity.

    - For added authenticity you may request that your students dress formally and set your room up in a linear fashion to resemble the House of Commons.

Handouts

Sources

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