Canada: Archives Canada and Refugee Claimants

canada: While there is a commonly held view amongst Canadians that we have been, and continue to be, a very welcoming country when it comes to refugees and other immigrants, the reality is that over the last 150 years nearly every large wave of immigration has faced significant resistance, according to Toronto Star. And, in pretty much every case, the arguments against allowing in whichever group it is at the time have largely been the same. Library and Archives Canada By Andrew Fitz Gerald Tues., May 16, 2017 With the recent increase in refugee claimants crossing unannounced into our country from the U.S., Canada's approach to refugees is once again being hotly debated. Our lack of historical memory concerning our often-conflicted attitude toward immigration prevents us from learning from the past and leads us to keep repeating the same tired debate over and over again. Canada had virtually the same reaction in 1939 when a boatload of Jews fleeing Nazi persecution on the MS St. When a boatload of desperate Tamils arrived off of Vancouver's shores in 2010, the Harper government declared it a national emergency, recalled parliament from summer recess, passed new laws and argued that the 400 or so bedraggled people posed a significant threat to our security. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.