• 1968: Pier 21 and the Prague Spring Refugees
    by Jan Raska, PhD, Historian (Updated August 21, 2020) Introduction: The Prague Spring and the Soviet-led Invasion of Czechoslovakia In 1968, liberal elements within the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia initiated efforts to reform the communist regime from within. Various sectors of the country’s …
  • “We Wanted to Come to Canada”: Pier 21 and the Arrival of Polish Orphans
    by Jan Raska, PhD, Historian (Updated August 21, 2020) Forcible Displacement of Polish Nationals to Labour Camps in the Soviet Union In August 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union concluded a treaty of non-aggression and neutrality. The Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Soviet Union – …
  • Forgotten Experiment: Canada’s Resettlement of Palestinian Refugees, 1955-1956
    by Jan Raska, PhD, Historian In the summer of 1955, the Canadian government took the “bold step” of admitting displaced Palestinian refugees from the Arab-Israeli war of 1948. The government approved the resettlement of 100 skilled workers and their families. Canadian officials believed that …
  • Humanitarian Gesture: Canada and the Tibetan Resettlement Program, 1971–5
    by Jan Raska, PhD, Historian In 1966, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) lobbied Canadian officials to accept a small number of Tibetan refugees for permanent resettlement. Initially, Canadian immigration officials disagreed over the resettlement of …
  • Filipinos in Neepawa: Immigration Experiences in a Prairie Town
    Time: 9:10 Transcript Neepawa is a small town in western Manitoba, in the Canadian prairies. A service centre for grain and livestock farms, Neepawa has a population of just under 5,000 people. The town has been growing over the past decade, with a 27% increase in the population between 2011 and …
  • Language as a Pull Factor for Newcomers to Francophone Minority Communities
    by Siniša Obradovic, Oral History Researcher The Oral History Collection and Interviews in French The Oral History team at the Canadian Museum of Immigration conducts recorded interviews across the country in order to learn about immigration through first-hand accounts. We seek to represent the …
  • Refugee Experiences Gallery
    Introduction CANADA HAS A LONG AND VARIED HISTORY of people arriving here because they were fleeing war, violence, or persecution. Loyalists, supporters of the British Crown, came to British North America during and after the American Revolution. Around 1900, Doukhobors fleeing religious …
  • Leaving Uganda
    Leaving Uganda …
  • Being Selected to Come to Canada
    Being Selected to Come to Canada …
  • War Strategies
    War Strategies …