1. When Rights are Denied

2. “Consider why Germany, fighting a war on two fronts, desperate for fuel and materiel of every sort, would bother to load millions of Jews on railroad cars and transport them hundreds, even thousands, of miles to concentration camps. Camps built specifically to house them, where they would be fed, clothed, even tattooed so they could be inventoried...just to kill them.” – Edgar J. Steele

3. The Japanese Internment

4. Japanese Canadians in B.C.
Before WWII, 22,096 Canadians of Japanese descent lived in British Columbia
¾ of them were born in Canada
After Japan bombed Pearl Harbor and attacked Hong Kong, some Canadians became fearful of Japanese Canadians
Both the military and the RCMP argued that Canadians of Japanese descent did not pose a threat to Canada

6. Japanese Canadian Internment
Pressured by the public, on Feb 24, 1942, PM King ordered that all male Canadians of Japanese descent between the ages of be sent to camps in the interior of BC
Two days later, the government gave the remaining Japanese Canadians in BC 24 hours to pack a few belongings and move inland
March 4, they were ordered to turn over their property and belongings – homes, boats, businesses – to the Custodian of Enemy Property
All their belongings were later auctioned off for a fraction of their worth, and were used to pay for housing in the camps

8. Internment Camps
Able-bodied men were often separated from their families and sent to work in road camps
Families that managed to stay together were sent to harvest sugar beets in Alberta and Manitoba
The conditions in the camps were deplorable
Most did not have running water and had few sources of heat, even in the winter

10. After the War
After the war ended, many Japanese Canadians were encouraged to leave Canada
Some were stripped of their Canadian citizenship and deported to Japan
Those who stayed were not allowed to return to Vancouver until 1949

12. Redressing the Japanese Internment
In 1988,the Canadian government formally apology to internees and their descendants for the indignity and injustice that they had endured. The landmark settlement included
a formal apology to Japanese Canadians and an acknowledgement of the violation of human rights that occurred
a payment of $ for each Japanese Canadian who was interned
the sum of $12 million for educational, social, and cultural activities promoting human rights and the well-being of the Japanese Canadian community
the sum of $24 million to establish the Canadian Race Relations Foundation to help eliminate racism
Canadian citizenship for people of Japanese descent who had been expelled from Canada or who had their citizenship revoked during this time

13. Canadian Anti-Semitism
In 1930 the Canadian government responded to the unemployment caused by the Depression by imposing severe restrictions on immigration
Although the cabinet could, and did, approve certain kinds of immigrants, permission for Jews to enter was almost never given.
Religious intolerance was still a common feature of Canadian society.
Anti-Semitism, which compounded religious intolerance with the new "science" of racism, was found among cultural and political leaders

14. “One is Too Many”
Strong opposition within the Cabinet and the upper levels of the civil service to admitting Jewish immigrants/refugees
Despite mass protests and continuous lobbying by political and communal leaders throughout the Depression and war years, pleas on behalf of the trapped Jews of Europe went unheeded
Canada took in proportionately fewer Jews than any western country
At the same time, Jewish Canadians responded to the call to arms in WWII and served in the armed forces

15. The Holocaust

16. The “Final Solution”
Hitler had stirred up Anti-Semitism in Germany to blame Jewish people living there for undermining the country’s war effort in WWI
Initially the German government passed laws to exclude Jews from civil society, most prominently the Nuremberg Laws of 1935
A network of concentration camps was established starting in 1933
Ghettos were established following the outbreak of World War II in 1939

18. Nazi Aggression
From 1941 to 1945, Jews were targeted and methodically murdered in a genocide, one of the largest in history
Every arm of Germany's bureaucracy was involved in the logistics of the genocide, turning the Third Reich into a genocidal state
Non-Jewish victims of broader Nazi crimes include Roma, Poles, communists, homosexuals, Soviet POWs, and people with mental and physical disabilities

20. In total, approximately 11 million people were killed, including approximately one million Jewish children
Of the nine million Jews who had resided in Europe before the Holocaust, approximately two-thirds were killed
A network of about 42,500 facilities in Germany and German- occupied territories were used to concentrate, confine, and kill Jews and other victims
Between 100,000 and 500,000 people were direct participants in the planning and execution of the Holocaust

22. “I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.” – Elie Wiesel

23. The Most Destructive War
WWII is considered to be the most destructive event in history.
It was total war covering the entire globe, and the nations that fought it employed every available resource, harnessing both technology and people to one purpose.
The farmer and factory worker became just as important to the war effort as the soldier in the field.
Aerial attack allowed cities and civilians to become legitimate targets of war.
Because of its destructiveness and global scale, the human and material costs of the war were almost immesurable.

24. Mass murder of noncombatants and prisoners of war occurred- tens of thousands of defenseless Russians, Poles, and Chinese died at the hands of their enemies.
A state-run genocide killed 12 million people, including 6 million Jews.
The war also cost millions of lives, resulting from battle as well as non-battle deaths.
The physical destruction of most of the continent of Europe and several Asian nations left an indelible mark.

25. Europe, 1945