Relatives of First World War-era internees seek redress from B.C. government | 24CA News
Vernon, B.C. artist Michelle Loughery solely discovered as an grownup about her household’s internment historical past.
“It was very emotional because it is how we understood why there was so much generational trauma and shame,” mentioned Loughery.
Her great-grandfather and a great-uncle had been interned together with 1000’s of different Canadian residents of Ukrainian and Eastern European ancestry.
The internees have been unfairly labelled “enemy aliens” throughout and after the First World War and despatched to internment camps.
There was a cluster of camps within the B.C. Interior together with a facility in Vernon that operated from 1914 to 1920.
“The government used the immigrants as a workforce so they were paid less than what they should [have been]. They were promised money and they were not given that money, yet they built Parks Canada, the highways, the infrastructure. They were the labour,” mentioned Loughery.
Loughery is now a part of a bunch referred to as Descendants of Ukrainian Canadian Victims Association looking for redress from the provincial authorities for what occurred throughout the internment operations. They are pushing for each recognition and cash to create a museum to coach folks on the historical past.
“This is still hidden. Every day I still work with people that are pillars of the community and I will [talk] about this and they are shocked,” Loughery mentioned.
Money for a museum would even be significant to Anne Sadelain. Her father was interned in three B.C. camps, together with Vernon, from 1915-1920.
“These people, a lot of them, didn’t understand what they were doing there,” mentioned Sadelain.
“They were extremely worried because they didn’t understand what was happening to them. They had read such wonderful things about Canada and here they were in prison.”
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She’d wish to see extra folks study this a part of Canada’s historical past.
“It might make people more conscious of their democracy,” mentioned Sadelain.
In an announcement, B.C.’s lawyer basic didn’t decide to any particular redress however mentioned she is grateful to the Descendants of Ukrainian Canadian Internee Victims Association for his or her work elevating consciousness of the unjust internment and would welcome the chance to satisfy with them.
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