“Small Gold Mine of Talent”: Integrating Prague Spring Refugee Professionals in Canada, 1968-1969

Summary

Following the 1968 Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia, 11,200 Prague Spring refugees were resettled in Canada. This movement included many experienced professionals and skilled tradespeople. This article examines how these refugees navigated language training and barriers to employment, including professional accreditation, and examines how this experience shaped bureaucratic and public views of refugee integration. This article focuses on resettlement and integration efforts in Ontario, since roughly half of the refugees were permanently resettled in the province.

by Jan Raska, PhD, Historian

Following the 1968 Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia, 11,200 Prague Spring refugees were resettled in Canada. This movement included many experienced professionals and skilled tradespeople. This article examines how these refugees navigated language training and barriers to employment, including professional accreditation, and examines how this experience shaped bureaucratic and public views of refugee integration. This article focuses on resettlement and integration efforts in Ontario, since roughly half of the refugees were permanently resettled in the province.

Read Jan Raska’s article, published in Refuge.

Summary

Following the 1968 Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia, 11,200 Prague Spring refugees were resettled in Canada. This movement included many experienced professionals and skilled tradespeople. This article examines how these refugees navigated language training and barriers to employment, including professional accreditation, and examines how this experience shaped bureaucratic and public views of refugee integration. This article focuses on resettlement and integration efforts in Ontario, since roughly half of the refugees were permanently resettled in the province.