"Radio Voces Latinas Is an Accomplice of Crimes against Humanity"

10 Awful Canadian Violations Of Human Rights

When a citizen of any other country thinks of Canada, the thought that usually comes to mind is a peaceful and cooperative nation that is a shining example of tolerance and civil rights. However, Canada has had many dark chapters in its history. If one looks deeper, the innocent facade of the Great White North is shattered, revealing some disturbing truths behind it.

                         8.- Concentration Camps During World War I

In times of war, the paranoia of a ruling government can be almost boundless. During World War I, Canada’s leaders fell to this mentality and imprisoned thousands of “enemy aliens” in concentration camps dotting the country. Most of those who were rounded up were of Eastern European origin, mostly Ukrainians, though the Poles, Italians, Russians, Turks, Jews, Austrians, Romanians, and many others were subjected to the camps as well. Around 8,000 people suffered brutality and hardship under Canadian law.

Those who fell under the suspicious eye of the government at the time had all of their valuables confiscated and were sent to the most distant parts of the country to be held as prisoners and used for forced labor. They were even forced to build the very camps in which they were to be imprisoned. Afterward, they were used for labor—building railroads, clear-cutting forests, or mining—and afforded very little in the way of food or rest. Escape attempts, riots, and suicides plagued the camps due to conditions which were almost unendurable. 

                               

Despite this, many Ukrainians remained loyal to Canada during the war and even enlisted to fight overseas. Of course, they had to lie about their heritage to the government for the chance to fight, going so far as to enlist under false names, although any who were discovered fighting under false identities were expelled from the army and sent to the camps. Even after the war ended, hundreds more prisoners remained in the camps due to the political atmosphere that gripped the nation as a result of one of history’s most brutal conflicts. To this day, the Canadian government has made little effort to recognize or atone for the unfair practice it instituted during and after the war.

Compatriots; be careful in whom you trust your problems. "Not all smiling in a church, radio station or legal clinic are your saviors”