Concepts
Students will know that:
Students will:
Students will:
Students may:
(e.g., immigrants and refugees from Central and South America and from Asia).
Teacher background
Some pertinent ideas and information that may be incorporated in this module include:
Explore ways the immigrants and Indian peoples helped one another and develop understandings about Canada's tradition of helping others.
Explore the meaning of "immigrant", and then discuss how people might feel when they first enter a new and different country.
Develop the following understandings.
.
Use maps to explore the new political structures - territories, federal government, provinces that were established and ways they changed over time.
Use focused imaging to develop understanding of and empathy for the experiences of these groups of people. For example, guide students in imagining they are a Métis child in the Red River settlement when they are turned off their land.
Helping each other
Use drama in context. The teacher could take on the role of a village leader in Europe. It has become necessary for the people to abandon their village and to search for a new home. Perhaps there has been a war or famine. Students could take on the roles of various people in the village. Family groups could be formed. Set up problem situations. There is a limit to the number of things the group can take with them. What are the necessities? Will they need tools? seeds? If families are allowed 40 kilograms of personal belongings, what will they take? To which country should they emigrate. Will language be a problem? What will be the priorities when they arrive in their new home?
Make connections by asking:
Have student do reflective writing about helping others and getting help from others. Have students make an action plan for themselves in the event that they are asked for assistance at some time in the future.
Use literature and drama to explore ways groups of people were discriminated against. Examples could include African Canadians, Japanese Canadians, Ukrainian Canadians, Chinese Canadians, Irish Canadians, Italian Canadians.
African Canadians Use the Student Information Page: African Canadians. Make cards using the statements and dates. Have students work in groups to do following:
As students learn about confederation, include the understanding that confederation occurred in response to a number of situations including:
Attention may focus on:
Learn about the building of the Canadian Pacific Railway and distribution, location, time, space, and decision making.
Discover that needs and wants of the immigrants at that time included push factors such as unemployment, discriminatory attitudes, and
religious intolerance. Needs and wants of immigrants at that time included pull factors such as the promises of land and employment opportunities.
Learn that the railway affected people in the following ways:
Chinese Canadians
Explore the role of the Chinese Canadians in the building of the railway.
Use Heritage Post: The Chinese in Canada, Number 9, 1992/93.
More recent immigrants
Invite a family, possibly recent immigrants, to share their experiences. Make a class book, drama, or timeline with a title such as Experiences of Sam's Family Since 19__.
Using the following scenarios and a wall map, ask students to speculate how each group of people might have travelled to Canada. Incorporate relevant vocabulary such as the names of oceans. Include other scenarios, especially those that reflect the backgrounds of students in your room.
Irish Immigrants
More than one hundred years ago there was a bad crop failure in Ireland. They called it the "potato famine" because potatoes were the main food of the Irish at that time and they didn't have enough potatoes to eat. Many Irish people came to Canada and the United States during the potato famine.
(The potato is a crop indigenous to the Americas and introduced to Europe.)
Many men came to Canada from China over one hundred years ago when the railway was first being built across Canada. They wanted to leave the poverty of their country. When they were working on the railway they would cook their own meals. People liked the smell of the food they were cooking. When the railway was finished many of them stayed in the communities along the railway and opened cafes.
Ukrainian Immigrants
Many Ukrainians fled to Canada to escape the harsh conditions in their homeland. Most of them had been farmers in the Ukraine and they were glad to farm in Canada. They were happy that they could own their own land.
Vietnamese and Cambodian Immigrants
In recent years many immigrants have come from Vietnam and Cambodia. Their homes were destroyed by war. They are anxious to make Canada their new home.
Use drama in context. The following events may be used to initiate the drama:
Japanese Canadians
Learn about the treatment of Japanese Canadians during the Second World War. Use Japanese Canadians. Include the following understandings:
Develop understandings about treaties.
Since the terms of the various treaties were similar, use one or two treaties (or preferably a summary) as a case study.
Have students, with guidance, generate questions about the treaties such as the following.
Alternatively, have students design a treaty concerning outer space. This could be done in a simulation activity where various students were assigned to represent different countries and interest groups (e.g., NASA, scientists). This would reflect their values and would give rise to questions on who "owns" space.
Roles of women
Develop understandings about the role and work of European and Indian women in the society of the time. Compare this to the role of women today. Use the Student Information Page: Women and Work. (Note: The profiles of the three farm women are also included in the Grade 4 activity guide.)
Learn about the work and experiences of Indian and European women.
Use a story such as Enwhisteetkwa: Walk in Water to develop understandings about the role of women in Indian cultures. Compare to the role to Indian women to the role of women today. Make predictions about the future. Use focused imagining or drama in context to explore the work and experiences of Indian women.
Use focused imagining to explore the experiences and work of European women. Imagine you are a European woman who has left her homeland and comes to this new land with her husband and family. Help students understand the workload of the woman. Explore feeling related to leaving a familiar situation and coming to a different country. Explore a situation where the husband must go away for the winter months to seek work and the wife is left looking after the farm.
Develop understandings about the role of women in the exploration of the continent.
Peace and war Use the Student Information Page: Peace to explore some events of the world wars and various issues related to war and peace.
Golden Rules
Students may know the Golden Rule Do unto others as you would have them do unto you, and the motto from the Scouting movement Do a good deed every day.
Use the Student Information Page: Multicultural Golden Rules to explore Golden Rules in different cultures and religions.
Suggested Resources
(listed in other bibliographies and catalogues)
Heritage Post: Canada at Peace and at War, Number 3, 1992/93
John A. MacDonald: Impossible Idea (MHP, 3909)
They Sought a New World: The Story of European Immigration to North America
(Gr 6 SS) Tom Talbot's Irish People (MHP, A6952)
Underground Railway to Canada (MHP, A6953)
Indian Treaties in Saskatchewan - Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, Saskatchewan
Region
Saskatchewan Historical Atlas of Aboriginal Settlement Mr. Wong of the CPR
(MHP, A6950)
Mud, Sweat and Steel (MHP, A6881)
Where History Was Made - Room of Destiny (MHP, 3625) Yesterday, Today
and Tomorrow (MHP, V8155)
Student Information Page: Differences
"And now class," the teacher said, "I would like you to meet Alice from Jamaica." I stood there, frozen as a prairie winter, as fifty eyes stared at me. What were they thinking? Were they looking at me, Alice the person, or my black skin? I felt myself wanting to change right there in front of them. To become the same and blend with the crowd. Instead, I returned their stares, and as my eyes scanned the room they came to settle on a small boy in a wheelchair. His legs seemed crooked, but in his face I saw something that reminded me of myself. He was as different as I, but nobody stared at him. Perhaps I had found someone who understood.
At recess time the teacher asked for a volunteer to show me around the school. The first one with his hand up was the small boy in the wheelchair. His name was Jacob. He was shy at first. So was I, for that matter. But as he gave me the tour, pointing out things of interest here and there, and handling his wheelchair like it was a natural part of his body, the barrier between us crumbled and I knew I had found a friend in Jacob.
We stopped in the main hall to look at some student art, and an awkward silence shot up between us. I broke the ice, looking at the wheelchair and asking, "What happened?"
"Polio when I was a kid," he explained, not at all embarrassed by the question. "You get used to the stares and the questions, and soon people accept you for what you are. You learn how to adjust to change," he concluded, and then he told me what an interesting accent I had.
I knew we had a lot in common - a person with a physical disability and a person with a social disability because of different skin and different customs. Both determined to be the best we could.
As time passed I became used to the stares and the questions. I found that most people were mainly curious, and did not mean to stare and ask dumb questions. It was simply their way of getting to know me. I was different, and they had questions to ask about those differences in order to learn.
Like Jacob, I had a need to be a part of it all, to have the freedom to be myself rather than just someone from another country, or someone to be stared at. And I had all kinds of questions to ask my classmates in my new country.
Questions
1. What do you think was Alice's main concern when first coming to class? 2. How were Jacob and Alice similar? How could they use the similarity to their benefit? 3. Do you think people notice "differences" before noticing other things in people when they first meet? 4. How might the students have acted toward Alice?
Student Information Page: African Canadians
1709
Slavery became legal in New France (Quebec).
1734
Montreal: A slave girl, Marie-Joseph Angelique, in trying to escape, set
fire to her mistress's house. The fire spread and damaged a number of buildings.
The girl was captured and hanged. The story brought public attention to the
living conditions of Canadian slaves.
1777
Some slaves in Canada escaped to Vermont, U.S.A., where slavery had been
abolished.
1791
Britain passed a law in Upper Canada (Ontario) that gave freedom to runaway
slaves from the U.S.A., but allowed white people to bring in slaves. This caused
a lot of problems. Authorities didn't always know which were slaves and which
weren't. It also caused problems in the community between the African Canadians
who were free and those who were slaves.
1793
A law was passed in Upper Canada (Ontario) that made it illegal to import
slaves. It also said that any children born after the law had been passed would
become free on their 25th birthdays. The law did not abolish slavery.
1796
Descendants of African slaves living in Jamaica had been fighting for their
freedom for over 100 years. Finally the Governor promised they could stay and
live in Jamaica. So they put down their weapons. But then the governor changed
his mind and deported them to Nova Scotia in three transport ships.
1792
Fifteen ships of African Canadians from Nova Scotia sailed for Sierra Leone.
Many of them had moved from the U.S.A. when they were promised town lots. But
when they got there they were given the poorest land outside of town. When they
tried building houses, they were burned down. Finally, they decided to go to
Africa. There are still descendants of the Nova Scotians living there.
1792
About 1 200 African Canadians left Canada for Sierra Leone, West Africa,
because of broken promises in Canada of free land and equality.
1813-15
About 2 000 African Americans came from the United States to Nova Scotia
and New Brunswick as refugees of the War of 1812.
1833
The British Parliament passed a law abolishing slavery in all British territories.
(This included Canada.)
1834
Slavery came to an end in British North America. August 1 is still celebrated
as Emancipation Day.
1850
Many Canadians refused to have their children attend schools with African
Canadians. In Hamilton, for example, there were riots when parents tried to
stop African Canadian children from attending white schools. So, a law was passed
to create separate schools for African Canadians.
1851
Harriet Tubman began her journeys, taking slaves across the border on the
Underground Railroad. She made 19 such trips, guiding about 300 slaves to freedom.
1851-53
Two important newspapers were started by African Canadians, both promoting
advanced ideas about African Canadian society.
1858
A group of African Americans immigrated to British Columbia from California.
1860
The African Canadian population of Ontario was about 40 000.
1860
The Victoria Rifle Corps, all African Canadians, was formed to defend British
Columbia.
1861
American Civil War. About 2 out of every 3 African Canadians returned to
the U.S.A. to help fight for the freedom of African Americans.
1882
John Ware introduced longhorn cattle into Canada and pioneered the development
of the rodeo. There is a monument in his honour in Calgary.
1900
The African Canadian population was about 17 500. (Compare with 1860.)
1909
The first group of African Americans from Oklahoma arrived in Saskatchewan.
1911
White immigrants/settlers objected to the increasing number of African
Canadians settling in the Canadian West. A law was passed restricting immigration.
1919
In the early 1900's, the Canadian railway companies hired many African
Canadians as porters. Many of them had come from the U.S.A. and the West Indies.
In 1919 their union became part of the main railway union. The clause that prevented
African Canadians from belonging to the union was dropped.
1919-24
Over 2 000 African Canadians emigrated from Canada to the U.S.A.
1971
Harry Jerome was awarded the Order of Canada medal of service "for excellence
in all fields of Canadian life". Jerome, an African Canadian born in Saskatchewan
tied two world sprint records and won a bronze medal at the 1964 Olympics.
1972
Rosemary Brown and Emery Barnes became the first African Canadian members
of the British Columbia legislature.
1975
Fifteen hundred Haitians came to Canada as refugees. But they were deported
back to Haiti because Canada did not accept their reasons for refugee status.
1986
Rueben Mayes, an African Canadian from North Battleford, was signed as
a running back with the New Orleans Saints.
1604
Mathieu de Costa is believed to be the first African in Canada. He travelled
with Champlain's expedition. Some say he was a free man, others say he was the
governor's servant. He was an interpreter for the French and the Micmacs of
the area.
1628
The first recorded slave purchase in New France (Quebec). He was a young
boy from Madagascar, Africa, who was given the name Olivier Le Jeune.
1921
Marcus Garvey, a Jamaican, began a world movement that fostered the development
of African pride and appreciation of African heritage throughout the Americas.
1939-45
During W.W. II, many African Canadians enlisted in the armed forces. Because
of discriminatory practices, many of them were assigned the duties of cook and
orderly.
1953
The Canadian Negro, a national newspaper, was started in Toronto.
1955
African Canadian porters on the railway won the right to be promoted to
the position of conductor.
1955-65
Many immigrants came into Canada from the Caribbean. Since housekeeping
was the main kind of job available to them, most (2 690) of the immigrants were
women. Many of those women were well educated and came because they saw this
as an opportunity for a better life.
1962
New rules for Canadian immigration. Immigrants had to have a certain amount
of education or skill training. Generally, African Canadians were pleased with
these rules.
The work of Indian women during the pre-contact period.
The research here is sketchy. Most historians agree, however, that work in the various North American Indian societies was organized according to gender. The work of women was compatible with child care. So women's work was generally the kind that kept them fairly close to home, did not place children in unnecessary danger, and was work that could be temporarily interrupted.
In hunting and gathering societies, this meant that the women did not generally hunt, but did the gathering for food and medicines. In societies where agriculture was practised, the men might help clear the land, but the women were in charge of planting, harvesting and distributing the food according to the rules of their society. In some cases, among the Iroquois for example, agricultural work was not only their responsibility it was under their control. It is believed that the Iroquois living along the St. Lawrence and the Great Lakes had been growing corn, squash and beans for at least a thousand years before the Europeans arrived. It may well have been because of their plentiful agricultural produce, especially the protein rich beans, that the population of Iroquois was large and thriving when the Europeans arrived.
How hard their work was depended to a great extent on the resources available. Where food and other necessities were scarce, both women and men had to work harder in order to survive. Where resources were readily available, the demands were not as great.
In Indian societies, women generally had control over, as well as responsibility for the children. Women would usually breast feed their children for at least two or three years, which contributed to the child's good health and also assisted in the spacing of births. In the case where parents separated, the children generally belonged to the mother. Women were usually free to choose their mates, just like the men were. In some societies where marriages were arranged, it was generally the mother who arranged it. Women usually controlled the domestic space and agricultural land (e.g. Huron and Six Nations).
It is clear that power and control was shared by both women and men in Indian societies. In some, like the Six Nations government, only men were allowed to speak at their council. But women had a lot of say in selecting (and deposing) the men for council, in the terms of their treaties, and in influencing decisions that had to reached by consensus.
Generally speaking, Indian women and men shared authority in planning for and participating in ceremonies and spiritual traditions. Both men and women could be shamans.
European traders, explorers and missionaries
In European societies, work was also generally determined along the lines of gender. Similarly to the Indian people, European women generally had responsibilities for the `at home' duties of child care, food preparation, etc.
A big difference, however, at the time of exploration and trade, was that European society was largely regulated by the church with its male dominated, hierarchal governing body. Men made decisions. Men owned land and property. The man was the head of the household, and how the women and children in his household were treated was up to him. In fact, a man's wife and children were considered his property. Laws recognized the rights and privileges of men. But according to the laws of the land, women and children had no rights or privileges outside the male dominated family.
Life for women of the higher classes was often pampered. Life for women of the lower classes was often filled with hardships.
Early European immigrants
Many of the early immigrants came to Canada in order to farm the land. The laws were such that only men could claim ownership of land. Some women tried to claim homesteading rights, but were unsuccessful.
On the farm, the work again was often decided along gender lines. The woman looked after the household duties and the children.
As the numbers of European immigrants increased, the women were helped build the community. It was usually the women who established the school or organized a community celebration.
The farm women worked very hard. They raised the children, churned the butter, planted and harvested the garden, looked after the chickens, picked berries, preserved food for the family for the winter, cooked all the meals on a wood stove, gathered and chopped the wood for the stove, hauled water from the well, scrubbed the clothes, spun the wool, made the clothing for the family, milled the grain, baked bread, and made candles and soap. And often they did some of the heavy farm work like ploughing the fields or pitching the hay.
Yet the farm woman had no legal claim on the property her work helped to acquire. The land was owned by her husband and he could sell at any time. In cases where the wife outlived her husband, the property was often willed to the eldest son and the wife might receive a small allowance. This allowance usually depended on her not remarrying. So as a widow, she went from being the mistress of her own house, to being the guest of her son and his family.
The farm daughters were no better off than the farm wives. They seldom inherited farms, and their portions of any inheritance was usually much smaller than that of the sons'.
In 1872 a law was passed that allowed some women, those with dependent children, to homestead on their own. Any other women who wanted to be farmers had to save enough money so that they could buy the land they needed.
During the years between 1910 to 1919 laws were passed in the three prairie provinces guaranteeing inheritance rights for farm wives and saying that a husband couldn't sell or mortgage the farm without his wife's consent.
Homesteading rights were, however, another matter. Those laws restricting the woman's ability to claim a homestead were not changed until the 1930's. At that time, the control of public land went from the federal to provincial governments. Saskatchewan and Manitoba cancelled homesteading rights entirely, and Alberta changed its law so that "every person" who met certain criteria had the right to obtain a homestead.
Farming Women Today: Georgina Binnie-Clarke, Melita Clemence, Bonnie Tweedie
Statistics Canada's 1991 census data shows about 20% of people operating Saskatchewan farms were women - half of whom work in a partnership with a man.
The census also showed women were identified as being the main farm operator in 6% of 280,000 farms across Canada.
Obviously, farming is still viewed as being primarily a male occupation. Women operating farms usually report some resistance from communities. They often have difficulties receiving bank loans and are often not taken seriously when negotiating business deals.
Profile: Georgina Binnie-Clark
In the early 1900s, Saskatchewan was the "magic land" where any ordinary man could become a landowner. It seemed the answer to many a dream. Many followed the dream. For some the dream turned into a nightmare.
Georgina's brother Lal followed the dream and took a homestead near Lipton, Saskatchewan. He grew to hate it - his dirty mud hut, a smoky open fire for cooking, and a slough for water.
Georgina's father had given Lal some money to come to Canada and get a homestead. Now her father wanted a report on how Lal was doing on his homestead. Georgina was on her way to New York and a career in journalism. But she agreed to visit her brother first.
If Lal expected her to leave after her first mosquito bite, he was dead wrong. She loved it here. She found the prairie to be serene and inspiring. She decided to stay. She had never churned butter or milked cows before. She had never harnessed a horse or cleaned barns either. But she learned fast. For two years she helped Lal make a success of his farm.
But Georgina wanted a farm of her own. As a single woman with no children, she didn't qualify for a homestead. So she bought a farm with a half section of land in the Qu'Appelle Valley. Her brother thought she was crazy. A woman couldn't run a Canadian farm! She would be the laughing stock of the community! For the first two years she sometimes hired a man to help with the heavy work. But after two years of poor crops, she couldn't afford that and she did all the work herself.
She spent one winter in New York writing for magazines to support her farm. People were very interested in what was happening in Canada, and she had no trouble selling her articles.
She was also a journalist here in Saskatchewan. She wrote regularly for a woman's page in the Grain Growers' Guide. In her column she wrote about the unfairness of the homesteader laws. She also wrote about other laws that were unfair to women. She claimed that ordinary men are not more capable than ordinary women. It's just that they are better paid. She believed this was wrong. So did a lot of other people, both women and men.
Two newspapers, the Grain Growers' Guide and the Winnipeg Free Press supported the "homesteads for women" campaign. They started a petition which was signed by 11 000 men. In 1913, the newspapers presented the petition to the government in Ottawa. The government's answer was "No".
Georgina did what she could for the women in her community. On her farm, she welcomed women and helped train them to be good farmers.
With her life on the farm, Georgina proved that women could be good farmers. With her writing, she worked hard to make things more fair for all Saskatchewan and Canadian women.
Profile: Melita Clemence
Melita Clemence has learned that smiling can often make even the worst hassles seem more bearable. That can be hard to do when the well goes dry as it did recently at the Clemence farm and then, when she went to haul water from the community well, the tank bounced out of the truck.
"You have to take a cheerful outlook on things, because if you don't you'll never make it," says the 61 year old farmer who lives a short distance from Regina.
Although she faces difficulties with a smile, Melita is a serious business woman. She has about 50 American Paint horses, about 50 head of cattle, a small flock of sheep, a few chickens, and some land that produces grain and hay. Besides that, Melita designs and creates clothing out of leather - coats, gloves, vests.
"You have to try a lot of things to make money or else I would not have made it here," she said.
A lot of people thought Clemence and her six children would not make it on the farm after her husband Murray died in a farm accident in 1977.
"I got continuous hassles from the neighbours and others who said to sell or rent out the land. It made me so mad I was determined to stay on," she said.
There were many reasons to stay. The farm had belonged to parents. She liked farming. She had confidence in herself. She knew her children wanted to stay on the land. There were just too many reasons not to give it up. But it was not always easy.
"Getting operating loans (from banks) was one of my worst nightmares," she said. "They seemed to think that women are not smart enough to handle the business end of things."
Another problem Melita has faced is men looking to buy livestock who try to pressure her into bad business deals.
Clemence has sold pure-bred American Paint colts across Western Canada, in the U.S., Italy and Germany. In the winter she ships some of her mares to a PMU line in Manitoba where the animal's urine is gathered for making oestrogen used in making birth control pills.
In the 16 years that Clemence has had responsibility of for the farm, things have improved. Banks are more used to dealing with independent business women. The neighbours have come around. "I guess they realize that this old girl can handle it," she jokes. "I always used to ask them how to do things and now they sometimes come to me."
Adapted with permission from The Leader-Post, Regina, Saskatchewan, March 15, 1993, page D1.
Profile: Bonnie Tweedie
Bonnie is a farmer. She farms with her husband and three young children.
Bonnie was not born on a farm. She was a city girl from Saskatoon. When she was 12 years old, her family moved to a farm near Vanscoy. Did it take her long to adjust to living on the farm? She said, "About 3 days after moving, I was a farm girl! It felt right. I loved it."
She joined the Vanscoy 4H Club very shortly after moving to the farm. 4H Clubs have the motto, "Learn to do by doing." Bonnie says this is the best way to learn how to look after livestock and develop a sense of responsibility. She belonged to the 4H Club for 9 years.
When she graduated from high school, she decided she wanted to stay on the farm. She already had some cattle, but she wanted to do something different. Her neighbour raised sheep and she thought that would be a good thing for her to do too. So, at 18 years of age, she went to the bank and borrowed $2 000.00. With that money she bought some sheep.
Later, when Bonnie and her husband were married, she continued raising sheep, and her husband continued growing grain. Of course, their work often overlaps and they often help each other. But like many farm families, they each have their major responsibilities.
Looking after the sheep was often difficult when Bonnie's own children were small. Especially during lambing time. It's important to be with the ewe when the lamb is born, just to make sure everything is okay. "When they were young, my children spent a lot of time in the lambing barn," observed Bonnie. "But in a way raising young children and raising sheep go together. When I had to get up at 3 o'clock in the morning to feed my baby, I would just put on my coat and go check on the sheep too."
Bonnie has been raising sheep for about 15 years. She has about 250 sheep, including the lambs that were born between Christmas Eve and the end of January. Every year she sells some of her lambs privately and has a local abattoir cut and wrap the pieces the way the customer wants them. She also sells registered stock to other farmers for breeding. Every year she shows some sheep and lambs at the Western Canadian Agribition in Regina as well as at other exhibitions across the country.
Every year in early spring, the sheep are shorn. Bonnie hires a professional shearer who usually comes with an assistant. Of course, Bonnie and her husband help too. Bonnie sells some of the wool to local spinners and weavers. She sells most of it to companies in eastern Canada. Some of the wool is then sold in Canada, and some is exported to different countries.
Sheep seem to do well in the Saskatchewan climate. They don't seem to mind the cold. As long as there are some shelters for them, they can be outside even when the temperature is -35 C0.
According to Bonnie, women and children and sheep are a good combination. Although sheep can be very stubborn, they are small, gentle and manageable. They seem to respond well to the gentle handling by women and children.
It seems like there are more and more women farming. But women have been always taken an active role in farming, even during pioneer times. Although the land had to registered in the man's name, the woman always did much of the work, and often took charge of part of the operation. The woman would often raise chickens or turkeys. She would usually plant, care for, and harvest the garden that was so important for the family's winter food supply. She would usually take charge of caring for the children. What could be more important than that?
Perhaps it's just that people are finally recognizing that the work women do on the farm is just as important as the work that men do. And it's when women and men work together, learn from each other, and support one another that the farm work gets done the best.
Student Information Page: Peace
Ottawa, the Peace City
Her Royal Highness Princess Margriet of the Netherlands was born on January 19, 1943 in Ottawa, the capital city of Canada where her mother Princess Juliana had come to wait for the war in Europe to end. The building where Princess Margriet was born had been declared Dutch territory so that the Princess would have the Dutch nationality of her father. The Dutch people were so grateful to the Canadians for their help during the World War II that they gave the Canadians a lot of tulip bulbs. The tulips can be seen blooming in Ottawa every spring.
Ottawa also has a peace flame burning constantly. The flame represents strength, optimism, and hope.
Suggestions for discussion and research:
1. The world has had many peace makers such as Lester Pearson, Pound Maker, Gandhi, and Martin Luther King. 2. Canada's military has a role under the United Nations as peace keepers. 3. The United Nations was established in part to maintain world peace. 4. Discuss the message in the following:
If there be righteousness in the heart, there will be beauty in the character. If there be beauty in the character, there will be harmony in the home. If there be harmony in the home, there will be order in the nation. If there be order in the nation, there will be peace in the world.Confucianism
Hiroshima, the Peace City
Today the city of Hiroshima in Japan is known as the peace city. At 8:15 on the morning of August 6, 1945, the world's first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. Almost the entire city was devastated in that single moment at the tremendous cost of thousands of human lives. For the survivors, too, there were physical and mental scars that would last a lifetime. The suffering lingers for many even today. The people of Hiroshima pray for peaceful coexistence and prosperity of all mankind and yearn for the realization of real world peace.
The Peace Memorial Museum and park has been built in Hiroshima to remind everyone about the importance of peace. Some of the many statues and monuments in the park include the Children's Peace Monument.
The Children's Peace Monument is called the "Tower of a Thousand Cranes", Thousands of folded paper cranes are offered there through the year. It was built in honour of Sadako and other children who suffered from atomic bomb disease. Sadako Sasaki was eleven years old when she died of leukaemia in October, 1955. Each day in the hospital she folded paper cranes because of a belief that folding a thousand paper cranes brings recovery from illness.
It also includes The A-Bomb Dome. The city of Hiroshima was totally destroyed by the A-Bomb explosion and has been rebuilt. The ruins of one of the destroyed buildings have been left standing as a reminder of the destruction. It is preserved as an appeal for world peace and as a witness to the horror of nuclear weapons. World wide campaigns raised funds to preserve this building.
The Flame of Peace is a flame in the Hiroshima Peace Park that will burn until the day when all nuclear weapons have disappeared from the earth.
Japanese school children visit the Hiroshima Peace Park with their teachers. They make colourful chains of paper cranes and place them on statues and monuments.
Profile: Kinuko Laskey
Kinuko Laskey was 16 years old when the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. She was a volunteer in a hospital 1.4 km from the centre of the blast. Seconds after the air raid warning, she was surrounded by an orange light and was blown out of the room. She managed to crawl to a broken water pipe, where she lost consciousness.
When she revived, a doctor carried her inside and stitched her face with heavy needles and no anaesthetic. He apologized for not attending to her sooner, but he believed that she was dead. She crawled through the city until she reached a train station and begged a man to carry her onto the train. It took her 15 or 16 days to get to where her mother and sister lived. They took care of her, but because of all her terrible burns and other injuries, she believed that she had no future. But she was wrong.
Kinuko now lives in Vancouver with her husband. She spends much of her time trying to educate people about the horrors of bombs and war. In 1982 Edward Kennedy invited her to speak at a U.S. Senate hearing about her experiences.
In Hiroshima where the bomb fell, some of the ruined buildings have been left as they were. The area around them is built up as a park. It is a memorial to the many people who died and those like Kinuko, who were severely injured. What would be a good name for the park? The Japanese people called it Peace Park.
Kinuko often speaks to school groups and teaches the students to fold paper cranes, a symbol of peace in Japan.
Adapted with permission from the Saskatoon Women's Calendar Collective, Herstory, 1991, p. 64