Cameron Miranda
The eugenics movement in Canada was promoted by a combination of heavy immigration and a fear that undesirable people were reproducing at a high rate. The term eugenics was coined by Francis Galton in 1883, and the movement sought to improve the human population through controlled breeding. Many Canadians supported eugenic policies in the early 20th century, including some medical professionals, politicians, and feminists. The formation of the Eugenics Society of Canada (ESC) in 1930 sought to organize supporters of eugenics and make their lobbying of the government more effective. The Canadian sterilization laws created a Eugenics Board that imposed sterilizations on people without their consent, and this was especially targeted at Indigenous populations. Despite being deemed unethical and inhumane in the 1970s, coerced sterilization of Indigenous women continued, and in 2021, it was found that compulsory sterilization was still ongoing in Canada.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Eugenics laws promoted by | Social traits like criminality and promiscuity, birth control, economic benefit, negative eugenics, positive eugenics, selective breeding, deterring the reproduction of "fated populations", improving the human population, limiting the rights and existence of a group of people, sterilization of "undesirables", targeting marginalized groups, targeting Indigenous populations |
| Supporters | Tommy Douglas, Clarence Hincks, Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario H. A. Bruce, psychiatrist Clarence B. Farrar, Emily Murphy, J.S. Woodsworth, United Farm Women of Alberta, members of the medical community, politicians, feminists |
| Targeted groups | Indigenous men, women, and children, Eastern Europeans, First Nations and Métis people, poor people, new immigrants, "the feeble-minded", people with intellectual disabilities or mental illnesses |
| Timeline | Gained popularity in Canada in the early 1900s, with laws remaining in place until the 1970s when they were deemed unethical and inhumane. Despite this, compulsory sterilization is still ongoing in Canada as of 2021, and a bill to end the practice was introduced to Parliament in 2024 |
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What You'll Learn
The Eugenics Society of Canada (ESC)
The ESC's strategy adapted from focusing on social traits like criminality and promiscuity, which were considered heritable, to emphasizing birth control while maintaining an economic benefit lens. Eugenics, coined by Francis Galton in 1883, was concerned with improving the human standard and influencing human evolution by weeding out "undesirables." This ideology gained popularity in Canada in the early 1900s, with many Canadians, including medical professionals, politicians, and feminists, supporting eugenic policies.
The ESC's formation reflected the growing concern for selective breeding and the removal of the "unfit" in early 20th-century Canada. By the 1930s, academics, doctors, psychiatrists, and politicians viewed sterilization as a solution to societal issues such as crime and poverty. This resulted in the targeting of marginalized groups, including Aboriginal peoples, the poor, new immigrants, and those with perceived intellectual disabilities or mental illnesses.
While compulsory sterilization laws remained in place until the 1970s, public opinion began to shift, eventually deeming these practices unethical and inhumane. Despite this change in perspective, allegations of coerced sterilization among Indigenous women persisted, with a 2021 report by the Standing Committee on Human Rights in Canada confirming the ongoing nature of compulsory sterilization in the country. The ESC's role in promoting and influencing these practices underscores the impact of eugenics in Canada's history, particularly in shaping policies and interventions that disproportionately affected vulnerable communities.
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Tommy Douglas' support
Tommy Douglas, the father of socialized medicine in Canada, once supported eugenic policies. In 1933, he received a Master of Arts in sociology from McMaster University for his thesis, "The Problems of the Subnormal Family", which endorsed eugenics. In his thesis, Douglas recommended several eugenic policies, including the sterilization of "mental defectives and those incurably diseased". He also proposed a system that would require couples seeking to marry to be certified as mentally and morally fit. Those deemed "'subnormal' due to low intelligence, moral laxity, or venereal disease would be sent to state farms or camps.
Douglas's support for eugenics may have been influenced by his embrace of practical Christianity in public life and his belief in government intervention to solve societal issues. However, by the time he became premier of Saskatchewan in 1944, he had abandoned his support for eugenics. As premier, he rejected reports and reviews of the mental health system that recommended legalizing sexual sterilization and adopting eugenics laws in the province. Instead, he advocated for therapy and vocational training for those with mental illnesses and intellectual disabilities.
Douglas's ultimate rejection of eugenics may have resulted from witnessing a Hitler-led rally during his visit to Germany as a World Youth Congress delegate, which he later described as "frightful". Many left-wing intellectuals also distanced themselves from eugenics following Nazi Germany's implementation of massive eugenics programs.
While Douglas's early support for eugenics is often overlooked or downplayed, it serves as a reminder that even revered figures can hold problematic beliefs. His shift away from eugenics demonstrates a willingness to reevaluate and change one's perspectives, and his rejection of eugenics as premier played a role in shaping healthcare policies in Canada.
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Xenophobia and Protestantism
Xenophobia is the fear or dislike of anything that is perceived as being foreign or strange. It is often based on the perception of a conflict between an in-group and an out-group, and can manifest as suspicion, desire to eliminate the presence of the other group, and fear of losing one's own national, ethnic, or racial identity. Xenophobia has been linked to nationalism and ethnocentrism, with religious symbols and rituals binding believers together and creating an "us vs. them" mentality. This has been observed in various social psychological studies, including those by leading Canadian social psychologist Bob Altemeyer, who noted that "the more one goes to church, the more likely one will be prejudiced against a variety of others."
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes justification of sinners through faith alone, salvation by divine grace, the priesthood of all believers, and the Bible as the sole authority. It emerged from the Protestant Reformation, a 16th-century movement to reform the Catholic Church.
In the context of Canada's eugenics movement, both xenophobia and Protestantism played a role in shaping policies and public sentiment. The eugenics message in Canada had a xenophobic and Protestant tone, targeting French and Irish Canadians. The falling fertility rate of English-Canada in the late 19th century, compared to French-Canada and immigrant communities, was a concern for eugenicists, who claimed that healthy societies were at risk. This was also influenced by concerns about immigrant selection and public health in the 19-teens, as evident in a 1920 editorial of the Canadian Journal of Mental Hygiene. The editorial linked mental health issues and social problems in Manitoba to the immigrant class, framing it as a threat to nation-building.
The eugenics movement in Canada, with its negative tone towards certain groups, gained popularity in the early 1900s. It was promoted by various individuals and groups, including medical professionals, politicians, and feminists. The formation of the Eugenics Society of Canada (ESC) in 1930 aimed to organize supporters and lobby the government more effectively. The ESC included prominent physicians and politicians, such as Clarence Hincks, a strong advocate for the Alberta Sexual Sterilization Act.
The xenophobic and Protestant tone of the eugenics movement in Canada contributed to the targeting of specific groups, particularly Indigenous populations, for sterilization and other invasive interventions. This was justified by the belief that the less progressed were a hazard to society. As a result, Indigenous men, women, and children were subjected to sterilization laws and the decisions of the Eugenics Board, which had the power to impose sterilizations without consent.
While public opinion shifted in the 1970s, and sterilization laws were repealed, the coerced sterilization of Indigenous women continued. In recent years, there have been allegations and reports of forced sterilization, with the United Nations Committee Against Torture recommending impartial investigations and measures to prevent and criminalize involuntary sterilization.
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Indigenous populations targeted
Eugenics is a set of beliefs and practices aimed at improving the human population through controlled breeding. It includes “negative” eugenics (discouraging or limiting the procreation of people considered to have undesirable characteristics and genes) and “positive” eugenics (encouraging the procreation of people considered to have desirable characteristics and genes).
Indigenous populations in Canada have been targeted by eugenic legislation, particularly sexual sterilization, since the 1930s. The Canadian sterilization laws created a Eugenics Board that could impose sterilizations on people without their consent. This became a familiar practice, especially in relation to Indigenous men, women, and children. In 1926, Adolf Lorenz of Vancouver stated, "our sense of humanity is destroying humanity. We are allowing more and more of the poorer human stock to survive and reproduce."
In the first few decades of Alberta's sterilization program, Eastern Europeans were the group most affected by the legislation. Under the province's mental health campaigns, many Eastern Europeans were institutionalized and therefore subject to the Sexual Sterilization Act. By 1972, First Nations and Métis people represented over 25% of those sterilized under Alberta's sexual sterilization legislation. Even after the repeal of sexual sterilization laws in the early 1970s, Indigenous women have been coerced into sterilization, some pressured to sign consent forms for tubal ligation while in labour or on the operating table. According to Dr. Karen Stote, about 1,200 Indigenous women were sterilized in the 1970s, about half of them at "Indian hospitals" operated by the federal government.
In June 2021, the Standing Committee on Human Rights in Canada found that compulsory sterilization is ongoing in Canada and its extent has been underestimated. A bill was introduced to Parliament in 2024 to end the practice. Although current views might define these actions as racist or genocidal, they were seen as progressive at the time. Canadian eugenics beliefs and practices operated via institutionalization and medical judgments, similar to other nations at the time. Some modern scholars contend this was a form of Canadian genocide of Indigenous peoples, aimed at limiting the rights and existence of a group of people.
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Coerced consent
The eugenics movement in Canada, which gained popularity in the early 1900s, was driven by the belief that human evolution needed to be guided and improved through selective breeding and the removal of those deemed "unfit" or undesirable. This ideology was promoted by various groups and individuals, including social reformers, politicians, feminists, and medical professionals, who sought to influence policies and public opinion.
The United Nations Human Rights Commission stated in 1999 that Canada was "in violation of international law in its treatment of its aboriginal people", highlighting the ongoing impact of eugenic ideologies on Indigenous communities. Dr. Karen Stote's research revealed that approximately 1,200 Indigenous women were sterilized in the 1970s, with half of these procedures occurring in federally operated "Indian hospitals". The Standing Committee on Human Rights in Canada further acknowledged in 2021 that compulsory sterilization remains an ongoing issue in the country.
The legacy of coerced consent in Canada's eugenics history has led to ongoing debates, lawsuits, and calls for justice. In 2018, Amnesty International brought the issue to the United Nations Committee Against Torture, resulting in recommendations for impartial investigations and concrete measures to prevent and criminalize involuntary sterilization. While public opinion on eugenics has shifted, with practices now deemed unethical and inhumane, the impact of past coercive sterilization policies continues to be felt by affected communities.
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Frequently asked questions
Many Canadians supported eugenic policies in the early 20th century, including some medical professionals, politicians, and feminists. The formation of the Eugenics Society of Canada (ESC) in 1930 sought to organize supporters of eugenics to effectively lobby the government. Notable members included Clarence Hincks, Clarence B. Farrar, and H. A. Bruce, Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario.
Eugenicists believed that natural selection was insufficient in dealing with the needs of modern society. They sought to influence human evolution by weeding out "undesirables" and deterring the reproduction of "fated populations". Eugenics was promoted as a solution to crime, poverty, and the growing costs of institutionalization.
Indigenous populations in Canada have been targeted by eugenic legislation, particularly sexual sterilization, since the 1930s. The Canadian sterilization laws created a Eugenics Board that could impose sterilizations without consent, and this was frequently applied to Indigenous men, women, and children. Even after the repeal of sterilization laws in the 1970s, Indigenous women have continued to face coercion and pressure to consent to sterilization.
Eugenics gained popularity in Canada in the early 1900s, with the passing of Sexual Sterilization Acts in Alberta (1928) and British Columbia (1933). However, public opinion shifted in the 1970s, and the practices were deemed unethical and inhumane. The role of eugenics in Hitler's "racial purification" and genocide also tempered Canadian attitudes after 1945.
