Transcript Clifford Sifton and Chinese Immigration

Clifford Sifton and Chinese
Immigration
Open-door Immigration Policy?
Clifford Sifton Overview
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In the years preceding his appointment many of those homesteading on the
prairies had been overwhelmed by the rigours of prairie life, and had packed up
and moved to the United States. Sifton set out to reverse that trend.
Once American immigrants began to move into the west Sifton shifted the focus
of the government’s immigration policy to eastern Europe.
Many Canadians were horrified by the influx of Poles, Russians and Ukrainians.
One newspaper even referred to Sifton’s immigration policy as a round “of
European Freaks and Hobboes.”
Despite this and other criticisms, the campaign was an outstanding success and
the number of immigrants entering Canada rose from 16,835 in 1896 to 141,465
in 1905.
Sifton astounded the country with his abrupt resignation at the end of February
1905.
He had become convinced that the education clauses in the bills intended to
establish the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan extended to Roman
Catholics privileges beyond those which they then possessed under previous
territorial governments.
When Laurier refused to compromise on the wording Sifton resigned.
Clifford Sifton
The Last Best West
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In 1896, Sir Clifford Sifton became Canada‘s new minister
responsible for immigration.
Sifton increased immigration by:
embarking on an extensive promotional campaign, featuring the
slogan "Canada: The Last Best West."
reorganizing the immigration department to give it more power
in setting immigration policy;
increasing the number of immigration agents and support
personnel aboard;
freeing up unused land owned by the Hudson's Bay Company
(HBC) and the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR);
offering "free" land to settlers.
The Last Best West
Results
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Sifton's new immigration policy eventually eliminated any threat of
American annexation in Canada's West. However, it would further
marginalized French-speaking people in Québec, some of whom felt
this policy was excluding them from settling on the Prairies.
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Henri Bourassa, a Québec Member of Parliament, was particularly
upset about this immigration policy and would speak out against it
occasionally in the House of Commons.
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Despite general attempts to get people to settle in rural areas in
Canada's West, about 50 per cent of people actually settled in
Canadian cities (including Winnipeg, Edmonton, Montréal and Toronto)
where they took labour industry jobs. Another 30 per cent went to rural
farms in the Prairies and the remaining 20 per cent or so took remote
jobs in mines, lumber camps or on the railways.
The Birth of Alberta and
Saskatchewan
Between 1897 and 1911, two million people
came to Canada. By 1905, enough people
were living in the Northwest Territories that
the federal government decided to create two
new provinces, Alberta and Saskatchewan.
These provinces were given authority over
denominational schools, which caused the
resignation of Sir Clifford Sifton as Minister of
Immigration.
Saskatchewan and Alberta
Chinese Tax
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In 1885, work on the railway was nearing completion.
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Trade union workers and some politicians on the west coast wanted to get
rid of these Chinese workers
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Many white people in blue-collar positions feared that the Chinese would
take away their means of employment and standard of living. They also
believed that Chinese people were:
less clean and more susceptible to diseases.
dishonest and immoral.
simply weren't suited to living in the harsh climate of Canada.
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In the face of mounting public dissatisfaction, a Royal Commission was
held by the federal government in 1885 to look into the effects of Chinese
immigration.
Chinese Head Tax
Chinese Immigration
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Chinese immigrants were subject to a head tax, which required every Chinese
immigrant to pay a special $50 tax upon entering the country.
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Although relatively few in number - there are only 23,000 Chinese people in Canada in
1900 - arrivals from Asian countries are resented by the white majority.
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Originally, male Chinese labourers were allowed into Canada to work for low wages in
British Columbia's gold mines and on the trans-Canada railroad.
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Chinese workers will accept lower wages than white workers, and this causes
resentment in the white population, especially when jobs are scarce.
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In the lumber industry, Chinese workers are paid only between 25% and 50% of the
wages paid to white labourers for the same work.
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The populace generally perceives Chinese people to be immoral opium addicts.
The Chinese Head Tax
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By 1903, the Chinese head tax was increased to $500 per
person to eliminate Chinese immigration.
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This fee was roughly equivalent to two years worth of wages for
a Chinese labourer living in Canada at the time.
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However, some employers in the railway industry needed cheap
labour, and were willing to pay this fee for adult men.
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That meant that Chinese immigration wasn't eliminated
altogether, but that Chinese women and children didn't get the
opportunity to join their husbands and fathers.
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This created a Chinese bachelor society in Canada.
Anti-Asian Vancouver Riot
1907
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In September 1907, there was a
serious riot against Asian businesses
in downtown Vancouver that was
started by members of the racist
Asiatic Exclusion League.
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A mob of about 9,000 white people
riled up by the Asiatic Exclusion
League descended upon Oriental
businesses in downtown Vancouver,
smashing windows and destroying
signs. Later that year, a federal
government inquiry was held to look
at providing compensation to the
Oriental community.
Rating the Immigrants
Eager to develop the West, Canadian immigration authorities rate immigrants according to their race, perceived
hardiness and farming ability:
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Most Wanted
English
French
white American farmers
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Acceptable
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Belgians
Dutch
Scandinavians
Swiss
Finns
Russians
Germans
Austro-Hungarians
Ukrainians
Poles
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Need Not Apply
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Italians
South Slavs
Greeks
Syrians
Jews
Blacks
Asians
Gypsies
Further Restrictions
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After 1905, when Frank Oliver succeeded Sir Clifford Sifton as
Immigration Minister.
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Oliver favoured immigrants to Canada's West from certain
regions believed to have the settlers best suited to life on the
Prairies. He tended to support the immigration of those who
came from the following regions in this exact order of
preference:
Nearby Canadian provinces
Britain
The United States
Northwestern Europe
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Frank Oliver
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As a member of parliament, Oliver had said
that settling the West was not "merely a
question of filling that country with people
who will produce wheat and buy
manufactured goods" but also of "building up
of a Canadian nationality so that our children
may form one of the great civilized nations of
the world." He worried that immigration could
"deteriorate rather than elevate the conditions
of our people."
Frank Oliver
Video
http://archives.cbc.ca/society/racism/topics/1433-9242/