LIFE IN CANADA FOR SOME IMMIGRANTS, 1930- 1944

The members of the Latino community though small in number did get together to share music, songs, food and good fellowship. I remember the sadness that there was when my god father went off to the Spanish Civil War of 1936 - 1939, never to return. Quite a number of Canadians, new and old went there to fight fascism. These men had high ideals and were willing to give up their lives for the sake of the welfare and the lives of others. They were a breed apart from the majority of Canadians.

During the depression and early war years Canada was a divided country because of major differences of religion, language and basically what we would call culture. The major divide was between the provinces of Ontario and Quebec; between the English Protestants and the French Catholics. In each of those provinces any minority group by religion or language were faced with discrimination. When I lived in Ontario, as a Catholic and going to a Catholic school I had to avoid the territory of the Protestant school or get beaten up. Later in Quebec though I was of the same religion as the vast majority, that made no difference and I had to avoid the French Catholic school areas or get beaten up. And, what did we see in Europe, individuals of the same religion, praying to their same God for their protection and their winning of the war, through the killing of other human beings and often, of the same religion!