The Workers' Revolt in Canada, 1917-1925


Book Description

A clear, concise portrait of one of the most dramatic moments in the history of working-class life and class relations generally in Canada - the upsurge of working-class protest at the end of the First World War.




Working People in Alberta


Book Description

A political and economic analysis of the history of working people in Alberta.




Labouring Canada


Book Description

Labouring Canada: Class, Gender, and Race in Canadian Working-Class History is a collection of 28 classic and contemporary essays exploring the complex interactions of class, gender, and race in the working lives of Canadians from the late eighteenth century to the present. The older classics lay the groundwork for the field of labour history in general, while the more recent contributions focus more specifically on issues of race, class, and gender. The range of topics examined is broad: from class relations in the fur trade, Aboriginal longshoremen in British Columbia, and racial discrimination against CNR porters to the negotiation of class in mid-1800s Nova Scotia, the Montreal teachers' strike of 1949, burlesque workers in 1970s BC, and the nature of the unpaid work performed by women in the home. Designed as a core text for undergraduate courses in labour history, this diverse collection provides an engaging and comprehensive introduction to the field. Readings are organized chronologically and thematically in eleven sections. Each section begins with an introduction that outlines the necessary historical context. Each section introduction includes a list of related resources. All essays have been edited and abridged to make them more accessible to undergraduate readers. Book jacket.




The Canadian Labour Movement: A Short History


Book Description

The Canadian Labour Movement is a fascinating story that brings to life the working men and women who built Canada's unions. This concise history recounts the story of Canadian labour from the nineteenth century to the present day. First published in 1989, it has been updated to include new developments in the world of labour up to 1995. Heron depicts the major events and trends in labour's history, and assesses the current state and direction of the labour movement. The Canadian Labour Movement is a masterful overview of the subject, providing a broad and accessible introduction to Canadian labour.




The Political Economy of Workplace Injury in Canada


Book Description

Workplace injuries are common, avoidable, and unacceptable. The Political Economy of Workplace Injury in Canada reveals how employers and governments engage in ineffective injury prevention efforts, intervening only when necessary to maintain standard legitimacy. Barnetson sheds light on this faulty system, highlighting the way in which employers create dangerous work environments yet pour billions of dollars into compensation and treatment. Examining this dynamic clarifies the way in which production costs are passed on to workers in the form of workplace injuries.




Colour-Coded


Book Description

Historically Canadians have considered themselves to be more or less free of racial prejudice. Although this conception has been challenged in recent years, it has not been completely dispelled. In Colour-Coded, Constance Backhouse illustrates the tenacious hold that white supremacy had on our legal system in the first half of this century, and underscores the damaging legacy of inequality that continues today. Backhouse presents detailed narratives of six court cases, each giving evidence of blatant racism created and enforced through law. The cases focus on Aboriginal, Inuit, Chinese-Canadian, and African-Canadian individuals, taking us from the criminal prosecution of traditional Aboriginal dance to the trial of members of the 'Ku Klux Klan of Kanada.' From thousands of possibilities, Backhouse has selected studies that constitute central moments in the legal history of race in Canada. Her selection also considers a wide range of legal forums, including administrative rulings by municipal councils, criminal trials before police magistrates, and criminal and civil cases heard by the highest courts in the provinces and by the Supreme Court of Canada. The extensive and detailed documentation presented here leaves no doubt that the Canadian legal system played a dominant role in creating and preserving racial discrimination. A central message of this book is that racism is deeply embedded in Canadian history despite Canada's reputation as a raceless society. Winner of the Joseph Brant Award, presented by the Ontario Historical Society




Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, Volume One: Summary


Book Description

This is the Final Report of Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission and its six-year investigation of the residential school system for Aboriginal youth and the legacy of these schools. This report, the summary volume, includes the history of residential schools, the legacy of that school system, and the full text of the Commission's 94 recommendations for action to address that legacy. This report lays bare a part of Canada's history that until recently was little-known to most non-Aboriginal Canadians. The Commission discusses the logic of the colonization of Canada's territories, and why and how policy and practice developed to end the existence of distinct societies of Aboriginal peoples. Using brief excerpts from the powerful testimony heard from Survivors, this report documents the residential school system which forced children into institutions where they were forbidden to speak their language, required to discard their clothing in favour of institutional wear, given inadequate food, housed in inferior and fire-prone buildings, required to work when they should have been studying, and subjected to emotional, psychological and often physical abuse. In this setting, cruel punishments were all too common, as was sexual abuse. More than 30,000 Survivors have been compensated financially by the Government of Canada for their experiences in residential schools, but the legacy of this experience is ongoing today. This report explains the links to high rates of Aboriginal children being taken from their families, abuse of drugs and alcohol, and high rates of suicide. The report documents the drastic decline in the presence of Aboriginal languages, even as Survivors and others work to maintain their distinctive cultures, traditions, and governance. The report offers 94 calls to action on the part of governments, churches, public institutions and non-Aboriginal Canadians as a path to meaningful reconciliation of Canada today with Aboriginal citizens. Even though the historical experience of residential schools constituted an act of cultural genocide by Canadian government authorities, the United Nation's declaration of the rights of aboriginal peoples and the specific recommendations of the Commission offer a path to move from apology for these events to true reconciliation that can be embraced by all Canadians.




Guarding the Gates


Book Description

From the 1870s until the Great Depression, immigration was often the question of the hour in Canada. Politicians, the media, and an array of interest groups viewed it as essential to nation building, developing the economy, and shaping Canada's social and cultural character. One of the groups most determined to influence public debate and government policy on the issue was organized labour, and unionists were often relentless critics of immigrant recruitment. Guarding the Gates is the first detailed study of Canadian labour leaders' approach to immigration, a key battleground in struggles between different political factions within the labour movement. This book provides new insights into labour, immigration, social, and political history.




Who Rules America Now?


Book Description

The author is convinced that there is a ruling class in America today. He examines the American power structure as it has developed in the 1980s. He presents systematic, empirical evidence that a fixed group of privileged people dominates the American economy and government. The book demonstrates that an upper class comprising only one-half of one percent of the population occupies key positions within the corporate community. It shows how leaders within this "power elite" reach government and dominate it through processes of special-interest lobbying, policy planning and candidate selection. It is written not to promote any political ideology, but to analyze our society with accuracy.




Canadian Bolsheviks


Book Description