CANADA IN THE 1930s

1. CANADA IN THE 1930s The Great Depression: just do SOMETHING! J. MARSHALL, 2008

2. Outline • The reasons for the Crash • The beginning was the worst • Mackenzie King’s vs. R.B. Bennett’s response • Herbert Hoover’s vs. F.D. Roosevelt’s response • Birth of new political parties in Canada • The people take action

3. 1) Reasons for the Crash and other factors that led to depression • The stock market was a relatively new thing - stocks vs. gold (traders and buyers were inexperienced) • Buying on margin - a license to print money • Panicked selling over almost a week caused the Wall St. market to collapse on Black Tuesday, Oct 29, 1929 The crash did not cause the Depression - it did make the suffering worse.

4. Other economic problems • The price of wheat had been falling since 1927: over-production didn’t drop so prices did - farmers’ mortgages suffered: no cash means no new tractors • Manufacturers were over-producing consumer goods = few consumers = layoffs = less spending money = fewer consumers • USA protectionist tariffs = trade barriers for all • Germany’s inability to pay reparations affected the Allies’ ability to repay loans to USA

5. 2) The Beginning was Worst • Canada’s economy was very closely connected to the USA - trading/branch plants/investors: • Wheat (40% of world supply) • Newsprint (65% of world supply) • As the economy failed people lost their jobs and the ability to pay rent: vagrancy meant jail time • To collect POGEY or the “DOLE” (Relief vouchers) one had to publicly declare her poverty: why would so may do without relief? • Private charity/soup kitchens

6. Laissez Faire - let it be Women and their children suffered as men looked for work, often “riding the rods”

7. Working with data: see page 80 in Counterpoints Data source: Counterpoints, p. 80

8. Percentage of Canadian National Income Spent on Relief: 1930 - 1937 Data source: Counterpoints, p. 80

10. Dust Bowl: Drought 1928 - 1936

11. 3) King vs. Bennett • King thought the Depression would be short-lived. He did little. • Bennett promised action, but as a millionaire, he didn’t understand the plight of the people. • Bennett did answer letters and give charity but he looked down on government “handouts.” As a businessman he dismissed Keynes’ economics as illogical.

12. Mackenzie King’s Liberals fall very short • Federalism: why didn’t King give money to the provinces? See the quotation about Tory governments on pg. 81. KING LOST THE ELECTION: Bennett’s Tories won a MAJORITY “A nation like an individual, to find itself must lose itself…to those of this government, I would not give them a five-cent piece.”1930

13. A nice house warming gift from Mackenzie-King to the incoming PM

14. Dark Depression Humour abandoned prairie farm newspaper • Bennett barnyard • Bennett blanket • Bennett buggy • Bennett coffee • eggs Bennett engineless car roasted wheat broiled chestnuts + How could Bennett’s wealth be a political handicap in a depression?

15. 4) Herbert Hoover vs. Roosevelt • Hoovervilles • Hoover’s strategy was to lower interest rates - the problem was too big! • FDR’s 100 days in 1933 • Close banks for three days • New Deal = “alphabet agencies” • Every letter to the President will be answered • End Prohibition • create CONFIDENCE and give LEADERSHIP

16. FDR listened to the economist Keynes: “SPEND YOUR WAY OUT OF DEPRESSION.” John Maynard Keynes (“Canes”)

17. National Recovery Admin Tennessee Valley Authority Public Works Admin Works Progress Admin Agricultural Adjustment Admin

18. 5) New Political Parties • In Canada it was we saw the birth of the CCF, Social Credit, and Union Nationale • In Germany and Spain, fascists came to power and joined Italy in the creation of a new world order

19. The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation • Some Progressives • Regina Manifesto July, 1933 • J.S. Woodsworth • Tommy Douglas

20. J.S. Woodsworth • Minister in Gibson’s Landing, 1917 • Pacifist/anti-conscription • 1921 MP: Indep Labour Party of Cda • Anti-violence (thus not Comm Party) • Sat with Progressives, 1925 (helped enact Old Age Pension, 1927 • Lost favour when he wouldn’t support Cda going to war in 1939

21. Tommy Douglas • Premier of Saskatchewan, 1944-1961 • Scottish-born Baptist minister • 1st socialistic gov’t in North America • INTRODUCED UNIVERSAL MEDICARE • Fable of Mouseland • 1st leader of NDP, 1961-71 (when CCF joined with Cdn Labour Congress • In 2004, voted “Greatest Canadian” in national CBC poll

22. Regina Manifesto • In small groups we shall now examine the preamble of Manifesto and its parts. • First: underline the main points argued in the preamble.

23. “What! The kids and Missus and I have to get out…after no crops and no prices, where shall we go?” Which two parties were the “old” parties?

24. Grab all Major James Coldwell MP Leader of CCF from 1942 - 1960 Coldwell and farmer labor assures: we hold title; thank God, my fear of losing home gone

25. See cartoon activity sheet 4-1

26. Fascism secret police, one party state, dictatorship, Militarism

27. Can you put in order Hitler’s steps to war?

28. Life in Hitler’s Nazi Germany

29. Canada’s Failure of the St.Louis Canada accepted fewer than 5000 Jewish refugees during the Second World War. Brazil accepted 27,000! Anti-Semitic advisors (from the South) to FDR persuaded him to block a USA landing - Mackenzie King who was visiting Washington with the Royal Family also gave in.

30. 6) The People Take Action • “On to Ottawa Trek” • Dissatisfaction with 1932 Relief Camps - designed to keep potential trouble makers out of the cities - think Winnipeg 1919 - ironically, the camps concentrated large groups of men who were easily organized. • 20¢/day = slave labour • Young men were mobile - concentrated in Vancouver (why would 1/3 of 150 camps be in BC?): history of unrest - Vancouver 1932

31. On to Ottawa: Kamloops3 June, 1935

32. On July 1st a meeting was called at Market Square • Only about 300 strikers attended - but almost 2000 people gathered. • Most strikers stayed at the exhibition grounds • Bennett had ordered the protest stopped - he didn’t want trouble in Ottawa. Strikers at the exhibition grounds

33. Regina Riot:1 July, 1935 The RCMP hid in 3 vans and the Regina Police hid in a garage. At 8 p.m. a whistle blew and they charged, beginning hours of hand-to-hand fighting. In the end 1 plain clothes policeman was dead. 120 strikers were arrested.

34. Outcome: • The next day the RCMP surrounded the stadium with machine guns - strikers were cut off from food and water. • The strikers called the Premier for a meeting - they were arrested but released to meet • National newspapers reported the police initiated riot • Premier Gardner blamed Bennett for the trouble. He ordered the men be fed and negotiated a disbandment to the strike. • The men boarded trains an returned west. • Bennett said, the Trek was "not a mere uprising against law and order but a definite revolutionary effort on the part of a group of men to usurp authority and destroy government." - the Tories were defeated that year in the 1935 federal election.

35. How are the police achieving order? Bloody Sunday: Sit down strike, Vancouver, 1938

36. End