Artefact 2: First page of the War Measures Act

Citation:

Labroquerie Tache, Joseph de. WAR MEASURES ACT (1914). An Act to confer certain powers upon the Governor in Council and to amend the Immigration Act. 2020. AbeBooks. https://pictures.abebooks.com/inventory/md/md30695745036.jpg.

Label:

Historically the War Measures Act was used during times of war as stated on the first page of the Act. Used in both World Wars, the act has a troubled past as it was used as a means to place individuals of non-white ethnic background (primarily Japanese) in internment camps. These camps acted as work/prisoner camps, as the Act allowed for the rights of individuals viewed as an enemy or threat to be suspended while enacted. However, the War Measures Act also suspends the rights of not only enemies but all Canadian citizens while it is invoked. Moreover, many call into question the Acts invocation on October 16, 1970 during the October Crisis. One belief is that the Act was invoked in order to not just target the FLQ but rather, any left-wing activists and Quebec nationalists in order to control the separatist ideology and put a stop to the violence in Quebec. However, backlash due to the suspension of civil liberties not only for the FLQ but for all Canadians caused outrage toward the Canadian government. The invocation was described as a “heavy-handed” overreaction by the Trudeau government, as it caused more fear amongst Canadian citizens in Quebec who were already worried about the FLQ’s insurrection. Although the War Measures Act does stipulate that it can be invoked during an insurrection it fails to acknowledge the innocence of the vast majority of citizens that get caught in the middle of it, leading to the controversy during the October Crisis.

Bibliography:

Munroe, H.D. 2009. “The October Crisis Revisited: Counterterrorism as Strategic Choice, Political Result, and Organizational Practice.” Terrorism and Political Violence 21 (2): 288-305. https://doi.org/10.1080/09546550902765623.