http://haitiholocaustsurvivors.wordpress.com/anti-semitism/u-s-special-envoy-to-combat-as/recognizing-the-indomitable-spirit-of-the-ms-st-louis-survivors/
The voyage of the MS St. Louis is a dark stain on the history of Canada because the Canadian government refused to accept the European Jews into Canada and made them go back to Europe. The government refused to accept them because it was very anti-Semitic at that time. The government faced pressure from the Canadian population to allow the Jewish refugees into Canada, but did nothing. Some people changed their opinion, wanted the Jewish people to stay, and tried to assist them by pressuring the government to help. The captain, Gustav Schröder, said to the Canadians that the Jewish people where planning a mass suicide to try and get the government to help them. If the government had helped the Jewish people, they wouldn't have had to return to Europe and most of them would not have died in the concentration camps. This reveals that Canada was very anti-Semitic when the Jewish people came.
Matt, I agree that there was anti-Semitism in Canada at this time. Today it seems reprehensible not to accept 937 people as refugees.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the voyage of the MS St.Louis was a dark stain on the history of Canada but why would the captain of the MS St.Louis say to that Canadians that the Jews were trying to plan a mass suicide?
ReplyDeleteThe captain said this so the police would take the Jews off the boat to stop them from a mass suicide. If the plan had worked the Jews would have been taken off the boat and onto shore. The captain saying this brought attention to the Canadian citizens of the problem at hand.
DeleteThis is very true, great work, i liked how you explained clearly how anti-semitis we were at this time.
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