Link: The sisterhood of Anne of Green Gables is ready for Anne’s next chapter
“L.M. Montgomery was writing in a time period where there were not a lot of women’s voices being heard nearly loudly enough nor often enough—and yet somehow she gave voice to a brave little girl whose loud and important voice is still resonating. I’m just thrilled that as woman producers today, we can continue to push the strength of L.M. Montgomery’s spirit through our Anne Shirley. Anne with an E is definitely our feminist rallying cry.†Continue reading.
This week and next, CBC is airing back-to-back episodes of Canada: The Story of Us … perhaps due to the negative press the show has received? We can only speculate. Even the Canadian Teachers Federation has jumped on the hate bandwagon and notified “the CBC ombudsman of their deep concern about the educational value of the series The Story of Us,” citing “historical omissions” with respect to the “near-absence of comments by Francophones.”
As a teacher, I find this particularly hypocritical given the decades-long absences of historical details in the various curricula across the provinces. I also feel that as a tool for educators, this program does, in fact, merit a place in our schools NOT as a replacement of effective teaching, but rather a good introductory piece for units in an effort to engage students with new topics. Cinematically, Canada: The Story of Us is extremely well done; each segment is short and gives enough information to interest students. Yes, there are omissions, but a well-trained teacher can and should be well able to fill in the blanks.
The first episode this week, entitled “Boom/Bust,” focuses on the collective effort exercised by Canadians when faced with difficulties. That strength in a common purpose which is explored in this episode is then tested in the next entitled “United at War.” “Boom/Bust” covers the Winnipeg General Strike (1919), the Turner Valley Oil Field (1914), the poverty of St. John’s Ward in Toronto (1911), Montreal’s part in Prohibition (1926) and The Great Depression (1929-37). I was struck by the story of St. John’s Ward. This was an entirely new piece of history that I had never heard about, and I was particularly intrigued by the use of photography to document this story, a practice that would have been very expensive at the time.
The second episode, “United at War” begins in 1940, and Adolf Hitler’s army has already dominated Austria, Czechoslovakia and Poland. Hitler’s threat to the rest of Europe is felt worldwide and Canada comes to our allies’ defence. To support that effort, aircraft factories such as that built in what is now Thunder Bay are developed, and once again, as in the First World War, it is women—1.2 million—who lead the workforce, enabling men to go to war. Spearheading the cause is Elsie “Queen of the Hurricanes” MacGill, Canada’s first female electrical engineer as there is high demand for Canadian built machinery. We also learn about the Battle of the Atlantic and the Capture of a German U-Boat (1942-1944), what it was like behind enemy lines (1944), the defeat of the Glide Bomb (1943-1944) and the Battle of Juno Beach (1944). Many of these topics have been covered before, but the way in which each was depicted gave new life to these familiar yet pivotal aspects of the war. I was particularly keen to learn about how Canadian Engineers at the National Research Council were able to reverse engineer the Glide Bomb in order to create new technology in order to defeat it.
Once again, Elder David Plain of Aamjiwnaang, weighs in with some comments about the time period—1911-1944—covered in Sunday’s episodes.
Episodes 7 and eight were not unlike the previous six episodes, centring mostly on the dominant culture and full of bravado. Episode 8 was devoted to the Second World War. I particularly liked the story of the Hurricane fighter planes but wished they had devoted a little time on the Lancaster bomber. That’s probably because I’m biased. My father flew one and was shot down over Holland in ’43. I was also pleased to see the story of the sappers near the end of the episode, and that they centred on Cree soldier George Horse from the Thunderchild First Nation in Saskatchewan. However, I think they missed a great opportunity by not mentioning Tommy Prince and the Devil’s Brigade. But perhaps they thought that a little overdone and wanted something fresh, invigorating yet not as well known.
Episode 7 starts with, “Spring, 1911.” An interesting date. Let me tell you what was happening in the world of Indigenous peoples in the spring of 1911: we were being strangled by the Indian Act of 1876. Under it, we could not participate in any “Indian religious acts†under penalty of a two- to six-month jail sentence. Enfranchisement was in full force. That section of the act allowed First Nations people to gain full citizenship with all its rights if they gave up their birthright voluntarily. Their names would be struck from the Indian Register, and they would receive a small amount of cash. They would also lose all treaty and band rights. Enfranchisement could also be forced on any individual who earned a university degree, or gained a profession or became ordained.
Each reserve was overseen by a government-appointed bureaucrat called an Indian Agent. These were plum patronage appointments, and most were wholly unqualified. However, everything had to have his approval. Supplies could not be purchased, and products could not be sold without the Indian Agent’s signature. Band Council meetings could not take place without his authorization, and all minutes needed his approval. The Indian Agent had complete authority over every aspect of our lives. We even had to have his permission to leave the reserve for a short period of time.
But in 1911, things were about to get even worse. The Indian Act was amended again. This time it was with a piece of legislation that became known as the “Oliver Act.†It allowed for our lands to be expropriated if a reserve was located by a city of 8,000 or more, and the city needed reserve land for development or expansion.
In 1919, the same year as the Winnipeg General Strike, some land developers were eyeing nearly 1,200 acres of our reserve [Aamjiwnaang, formerly Chippewa of Sarnia] for a steel plant. They offered to buy. We had a general band meeting and voted not to sell. They tried again. Again, we voted not to sell. The developers, along with the City of Sarnia Chamber of Commerce, appealed to the Department of Indian Affairs. The Superintendent of Indian Affairs wrote a letter to the Chief and Council threatening that if we didn’t voluntarily sell the land for the steel plant, the Department would enact the Oliver Act and expropriate all of our lands and forcibly move us. We had a third general band meeting and under the duress of losing our whole reserve, we voted to sell. Of course, all of this was illegal. So, why didn’t we hire good lawyers you might ask? That too was forbidden.
Episode 7 was a story of boom and bust for Canada, but for First Nations, it was just bust. Episode 8 expounded upon Canada’s exploits in the Second World War. While the fighting raged on in Europe, a different kind of fight was taking place back home.
Aerial view of the former Ipperwash Army Cadet Camp located at Stoney Point (Photo from Army Cadet History)
The Department of National Defense (DND) wanted the Stony Point Reserve on Lake Huron to use for training. They went to the Department of Indian Affairs who encouraged the Stony Point Band to surrender their reserve. They had a general band meeting and overwhelmingly rejected the sale. So, the DND used their powers under the War Measures Act to expropriate the whole reserve. They forced the residents to move to nearby Kettle Point Reserve giving each a small plot of land. Although they paid them for improvements, they had made they did not pay them for unimproved land. The DND only had $50,000 in their budget for the acquisition so after they paid for moving and improvements that only left enough to pay the band $15 an acre.
It wasn’t much of a fight.
Chi Miigwetch once again to David Plain for sharing his thoughts!
The final two episodes of Canada: The Story of Us airs next Sunday at 8 and 9 p.m. on CBC.
On Tuesday, May 9, at 8 p.m. on Facebook Live, CBC Montreal host Mike Finnerty will be hosting a live round table to discuss Sunday’s episodes.
David Plain B.R.S., M.T.S., is the author of five books with a sixth, The Exmouth Chronicles: A Memoir due out spring 2017 by Trafford Publications. You can reach David on Facebookor Twitter.
Just For Laughs and CBC Comedy are looking for the funniest new voices in Canadian comedy with the announcement of the CBC Comedy Originals Pitch Program — an open-forum pitch event which takes place Thursday, July 27th during the leading industry event of the comedy business – Just For Laughs ComedyPRO.
The CBC Comedy Originals Pitch Program will offer five selected Canadian creator and producer teams the opportunity to pitch their original web or TV concepts to a panel of senior development executives and key creatives from CBC Comedy.
The event is open to Canadians, 18 years of age and over. Deadline for submissions is May 15, 2017. For details and guidelines visit: http://comedypro.hahaha.com/submissions/.
Series that have originated from Just For Laughs ComedyPRO include hit CBC digital original comedies My 90-Year-Old-Roommate and Newborn Moms.
All interested applicants will be considered for both the CBC Comedy Originals Pitch as well as the relevant short or long-form Stand Up & Pitch pitch programs. The deadline for Stand Up & Pitch has been extended to May 15 to accommodate the new program. Guidelines are posted at http://comedypro.hahaha.com/submissions/.
The CBC will also host ‘CBC Comedy Funny Lunch’ where delegates can meet Canadian comics, creators and representatives from CBC Comedy.
Just For Laughs ComedyPRO runs from July 26 – 29, 2017 at the Hyatt Regency Montreal, part of the 35th annual Just for Laughs Festival, which takes place from July 12 – 31st, 2017.
In 1999, veteran NBC news broadcaster Tom Brokaw wrote a book called The Greatest Generation, and Sunday’s episode of Canada: The Story of Us entitled, “Service and Sacrifice,” tells the Canadian version of that same era in history—The First World War—and gives detailed accounts of Canadian initiative and heroism during it.
We begin with Francis Pegamahgabow, an Anishnaabek man from what is now Shewanaga First Nation along Georgian Bay, who through his courageous acts in Europe at the Battle of Ypres and Passchendaele, was the recipient of the Military Medal three times, and to this day is the most decorated Indigenous soldier in Canadian military history. Once home from the war, Francis became Chief of Wasauksing and helped to establish what is now known as the Assembly of First Nations.
The episode then goes on to detail the leadership of General Sir Arthur William Currie, and nicely illustrates his tactical prowess and victory at Vimy Ridge in this the centennial anniversary of that battle.
But with the need for servicemen, Canadian farms were at risk. The need for food necessitated the Soldiers of the Soil (SOS) national initiative. This program encouraged adolescent boys to volunteer for farm service and recruited more than 22,000 young men from across Canada. Many came from urban high schools and lived on rural farms for terms of three months or more.
Women, too, saw a revolution in their roles within Canadian society as they contributed dramatically to the war effort. Thousands joined the labour force and manned the factories, particularly within the munitions manufacturing sector, whilst others travelled to the front as nurses of the Canadian Army Medical Corps, risking their own lives to serve on the field of battle.
This episode also covered the death of Baron von Richthofen—a.k.a. The Red Baron—by Canadian Lieutenant Wilfrid “Wop” May of No. 209 Squadron, Royal Air Force, and the importance of radio and its ability to connect Canadians was demonstrated with the retelling of May’s “Race against Death,” 10 years following the war.
Veteran CBC broadcaster Peter Mansbridge once again closes with a most eloquent epilogue for this episode. “A Canadian is someone who cares,” he states. “They actually really care. Not just about themselves and their family, but they care about their neighbours, whether those neighbours are across the street, or across the country, or the other side of the world.” I’ll take that.
Two things struck me in this episode. The most poignant—and perhaps meta—was the simple animation that illustrated how the wheat from the prairies made its way to Europe. Tracing the movements and the re-referencing of the Welland Canal was a clever application to illuminate how we are, even today, connected to the history of Canada. Were it not for the building of the canal that we saw in Episode 3 “Connected,” this would not have been possible, or perhaps as, fluid—pun intended—a method to transport supplies for the troops. The second and perhaps more important point that bears repeating: this episode illustrates quite nicely the degree of sacrifice that all Canadians—or most—across all demographics, made for the war effort. This was a unified nation focused on one goal.
A brief conversation with David Plain this week yielded the following comments regarding “Service and Sacrifice”:
I was pleased with job the producers did on Francis Pegamahgabow. I was also pleased with the amount of time they devoted to his story, almost seven minutes of a 45-minute production. One of the things that jumped out at me was they introduced him as “an Anishnaabe from Wasauksing” rather than “an Ojibwa from the Parry Island Reserve.” The former introduction recognizes who we are rather than using the kind that has been foisted upon us for the previous 200 years. A little recognition is pleasing.
He did remarkable things during The Great War and was well decorated for them. They went on to report on his return where he also did noteworthy things within his community. However, it wasn’t like that for all native warriors returning from the war.
Over 4,000 native men from across the country enlisted. They went off to war on a foreign continent for a country that was suffocating them at home. When they returned it was to the weight of the Indian Act and as wards of the government, not as citizens with equal rights. My grandfather enlisted in 1916 and fought through to the Second Battle of Arras where he was wounded in 1918. In order for him and his young family to gain those rights when he got home, he had to go through enfranchisement, a construct invented by the government that allowed Indigenous people to sell their birthrights for full citizenship. It effectively removed them from the “Indian Register†and turned them into white people. That’s sad.
If a nation wants to celebrate who it is that fine, but it needs to keep things in perspective. Laud the great things but don’t ignore the warts.
Chi miigwetch to David Plain for sharing his thoughts!
Canada: The Story of Us airs Sundays at 9 p.m. on CBC.
David Plain B.R.S., M.T.S., is the author of five books with a sixth, The Exmouth Chronicles: A Memoir due out later this month April 2017 by Trafford Publications. You can reach David on Facebookor Twitter.
Link: The Other Side of Anne of Green Gables
Do you know Anne Shirley? You would like her. Everybody does. A lively and optimistic survivor with a feverish imagination and unchecked enthusiasms, she is a redheaded outsider who becomes an insider without forsaking her peculiarities or her intelligence. An inadvertent feminist, an unrepentant romantic, a hot-tempered sprite, she’s impulsive, she’s dramatic, she’s smart, she’s funny, she insists on spelling her name with an E at the end because it “looks so much nicer.†Continue reading.
