Trudeau delivers apology to Italian Canadians for internment during WW2
Posted May 27, 2021 12:15 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
OTTAWA – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has delivered a formal apology for the internment of Canadians of Italian descent during the Second World War.
Speaking in the House of Commons, Trudeau said the Italian Canadian community has carried the weight of the unjust policy of internment during the war.
Trudeau said the House of Commons didn’t have to declare war on Canadians of Italian heritage when it declared war on Italy’s fascist regime in June 1940.
“To stand up to the Italian regime that had sided with Nazi Germany, that was right,” he said.
“But to scapegoat law-abiding Italian-Canadians, that was wrong.”
He said 31,000 Italian Canadians were labelled “enemy aliens,” and then fingerprinted, scrutinized and forced to report to local registrars once a month.
Trudeau said more than 600 men were arrested and sent to internment camps, and four women were detained and sent to jail without formal charges, ability to defend themselves in a fair trial or a chance to present or rebut evidence.
“To the tens of thousands of innocent Italian-Canadians who were labelled enemy aliens, to the children and grandchildren who have carried a past generation’s shame and hurt and to their community – a community that has given so much to our country – we are sorry,” Trudeau said.
He said those who were interned did not turn their backs to Canada, and instead, they chose to contribute to building it, proving they loved the country they had chosen as their home.
“Every thriving business these men and women rebuilt or local charity they started was a testament to their commitment to Canada,” he said.
“What better way to show that the injustice done to them had been a mistake?”
Justice Minister David Lametti says none of those who were interned was ever convicted and the internees weren’t afforded due legal process.
