Reactions to the Depression

1. Reactions to the Depression

2. Crime • Many men who had lost their jobs or their homes turned to alcohol. • This led to an increase in crimes such as wife and child abuse. • For others, the only solution was to become criminals. • The only way they could feed their children was by stealing. • Because poverty was so widespread, criminals were not looked down on as much during the 1930s. • Many people understood that criminals really had no choice. People reacted to the Depression in different ways, depending on their situation:

3. Escape • Families were broken up. • Many men could not deal with the shame of not being able to take care of their families. • Result: They ran away. • Thousands of men became transients. • They jumped on trains and moved from city to city looking for work. • In most places, being a transient was a crime! • The only industry that grew during the 1930 was the entertainment industry. • People needed movies and music – these allowed them to escape their reality for a little while.

4. Protests • The 1930s were a decade of protests. The most famous of these was the On-to-Ottawa-Trek. • In 1935, 1,000 relief camp workers from BC left their camps to protest against conditions there. • Their union (Relief Camp Worker’s Union) met in Vancouver, and they decided to take their complaints to Ottawa. • The workers climbed into or onto trains. • As the trains moved across Canada, more people joined them! • When they got to Regina, Saskatchewan, they were stopped by the RCMP. • The police told them that only their leaders could go on. The rest of the protesters were put in a stadium.

5. ON TO OTTAWA TREK

6. When the union leaders met Bennett, he called them trouble makers, criminals and thieves. • Their leader, Slim Evans, responded by calling Bennett a liar who was unfit to govern Canada. • After this, security removed the union leaders from Bennett’s office. • Back in Regina, the RCMP were told to clear the stadium of protesters. • The Trekkers resisted, and a violent riot broke out (Regina Riot). • Results: • One police officer was killed. • Many protesters were injured and arrested.

7. Regina riot

8. New Political Parties • Many Canadians were furious because they felt that the government was ignoring the needs of the working class. • Result: They created new political parties that represented workers. • CCF (Cooperative Commonwealth Federation) • This was a socialist party created by J.S. Woodsworth. • Its platform was described in the Regina Manifesto: • It supported social programs to help the elderly, homeless, sick, and unemployed. • It supported government ownership of important industries. • It supported government spending to create jobs.

9. Social Credit • This party was created by William Aberhart. • He believed that government needed to release money so that people could spend it. • He promised that every citizen would be given a “basic dividend” of $25 every month. • Results: • The CCF became the third most powerful party in Ottawa. It has also become the governing party of some provinces. • Its ideas influenced the decisions of the Liberals and the Conservatives. • Social Credit became the government of Alberta in 1935, but the federal government challenged their right to issue money. • Their “basic dividend” never became a reality. • The Social Credit party remained popular in Western Canada until the 1990s.