Topic #1 Review

Propaganda & The War Effort

Government Control

– Propaganda• Government used posters, radio ads, newspaper articles to

encourage people to support the war effort; Victory Bonds, Enlistment, Sending Men, Women joining, Guarding Secrets (loose lips sink ships), Community Efforts, Fear of the Enemy, etc.

– Censorship• Similar to WWI, the government controlled what was

published on posters, in newspapers and said on the radio to control what the public knew about the war efforts; they wanted people to believe they should support the war

Government Control cont…

– Limitation of Rights & Freedoms• People had to ration foods and control what basic living

supplies they were using; ration booklets were handed out, extra supplies were sent overseas, people had to learn to live with less• War Measures Act still in effect could arrest and

detain anyone suspected of being disloyal

Economic Expansion

• economy rapidly expanded once the war broke out value of economic production increased from $5.6 billion in 1939 to $11.8 billion in 1945 (this was important because we had just gone through the Great Depression; people needed money and jobs and this was an important step towards rebuilding our world; also garnered support for the war efforts)

Economic Expansion

– federal government gave money to businesses to convert their production over to munitions and military supplies• Car factories tank and military trucks• Civilian Aircraft Plants built the “Lancaster” and

“Halifax” bombers• Ship building yards naval boats

– Much needed job creation came out of this

Women’s Roles

– many women replaced the men who had joined the forces

– women took on a variety of non-traditional jobs• lumberyard workers• shipyards• mechanics• engineers

– women got paid significantly less than men for doing the same jobs (about half as much)

– would take over 40 years until “equal work would become equal pay” was a law

Community Efforts – Government didn't have enough money to support the war because we were just coming

out of a recession; looked to citizens to help out

– Fundraising: an example of a community fundraising effort, the Chinese Canadian communities raised over $5 million for the war efforts (started as money raised to help China when they went to war with Japan in 1937)

– "One Percent Scheme": NFLD put in place, 1% of everyone's pay went to war efforts

– Scrap drives: organized by communities, would collect old metal and rubber that could be used to build military supplies/vehicles/weapons

– Victory Gardens: adults and children would grow vegetables that could be sent overseas

– Packing Boxes: older people packed boxes of food and supplies

– Rationing

– Victory Bonds: money to support war efforts

Conscientious Objectors & Pacifists

– Same religious groups that objected to WWI felt the same way during WWII• Mennonites, Quakers, Hutterites, Doukhobors• believed war was so wrong that Canada shouldn’t even

defend itself if attacked

– Pacifists were prepared to defend Canada, but believed that a peaceful solution could be found• J.S. Woodsworth was only member of parliament who

opposed in 1939• Others had limited influence on society

Conscription of 1943

– Volunteer rates dropped off by 1943

– PM Mackenzie King didn’t want to introduce conscription because it divided the nation in 1917 :Conscription if necessary. But not necessarily conscription”• Wanted issue to just go away, but it didn’t

Conscription of 1943

– Decided to hold a plebiscite (voters asked to answer a yes or no question; government may choose to adopt of ignore the result) • Country divided again; people in Quebec didn’t want to

support the war• But, other eight provinces voted in favour

– Conscription was introduced, but as conscripts were drafted and trained, the war was winding down in Europe never sent overseas, used for protecting Canada, limited contribution and bad feelings were left with the Nation