How Did Fenzie King Sabotage Canada

Canada is known for its diversity and equality but ever since the first Japanese immigrant arrived in 1877, they were welcomed with racism and discrimination. At first, they were known as more "desirable" compared to the Chinese but quickly that changed. The Japanese Canadians were regarded as spies that would sabotage Canada, although there was no evidence to support their biased judgement. The treatment of the Japanese Canadians was truly unethical, they suffered unbearable living conditions that were not impartial. They were not treated equally in the Canadian community, they were considered inferior to the rest of the community. Discrimination was evident in Canada during World War 2 and this can be seen through the treatment of Japanese …show more content…
Many political leaders, such as Ian Mackenzie, discriminated against Japanese Canadians but in August 1944, Mackenzie King said, "it is a fact no person of Japanese race born in Canada has been charged with any act of sabotage or disloyalty during the years of war." Mackenzie King was an influential leader during this time, someone who the people trusted. Moreover, he was aware of the racial discrimination that was recognizable in Canada and when he made this statement, he was clear that no Japanese Canadian had ever sabotaged or betrayed Canada. In result, the people had no reason to display discrimination against Japanese Canadians. Mackenzie King, the prime minister of Canada, had the country’s best interests in mind, yet the people in Canada continued to display racial discrimination against Japanese Canadians. Canada's senior military and RCMP officers stated that Japanese Canadians were unimpeachable, Major-General Kenneth Stuart wrote, “from the army point of view, I cannot see that Japanese Canadians constitute the slightest menace to national security." Like Mackenzie King, the RCMP officers and the senior military believed that the Japanese Canadians were harmless. They knew who the true threats were, and their professional judgment was valuable. They were confident that the Japanese Canadians were no threat and if the Japanese Canadians wanted to sabotage Canada, the RCMP officers and military would have informed the people as it was their job to protect Canada. The general public did not take this valuable judgment into consideration - they continued to view Japanese Canadians as spies and treated them with discrimination. On September 7, 1907, discrimination towards the Japanese escalated. A mob of 9000 went into "Japantown" and began to destroy the Japanese community but fortunately, they did not get