Censored Correspondence
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Activities
LOOK
Look at this document. Can you read it? How do you think it would feel to receive a letter that had been censored like this?
THINK
Read the historical context below. How did Camillien Houde’s position allow him to effectively protest the registry? If he were a regular citizen, would his protest have drawn as much attention? And, as a regular citizen, do you think he would have been imprisoned for four years?
THINK
This letter from Camillien Houde to his wife was censored by the government. What purpose do you think censorship served during the war?
DO
Compare Camillien Houde’s protest with another occasion in Canada’s history when a prominent person spoke out against the government. Do some external research to support your findings.
Details
Date 1940–1944
Materials - Paper
- Ink
Transcript
Petawawa, Tuesday, Oct. 14 1941 2 p.m.
Love,
I have not received any letters from you for a few days now, except for a letter from the 3rd of this month which was delivered to me this morning [censored]. I’m beginning to believe that, as the human machine ages, there is always something that goes wrong. Imagine that: I can’t wear my upper dentures because my upper gum has been hurting for some time and, as it doesn’t seem to heal quickly, I’m starting to worry a bit. I should have stopped wearing my dentures as soon as a doctor interned here, who knows his stuff, suggested I do so. But I thought I was too unattractive without dentures, so I continued to wear them. Tomorrow morning, I have to go before the camp medical officer, and it is possible, even probable [censored]. I don’t know if [censored]. I hope so. I wanted to talk to you about this a week or two ago, but I thought I’d wait to see if it would get worse or go away. I’m far from discouraged, but I was quite happy until my heart started to race and my gums started to chafe. All I ask is that you not worry, because I will keep you in the loop. Claire told me in her last letter that she had a feeling we would see each other again soon. I don’t know if she has the same intuition as her mother, but if she does, I’m sure it will come to pass, because your hunches never fail to come true. I love you as never before.
YOUR MAN
Historical Context
Choose one of the three levels below to match your needs.
- The 1940 National Resources Mobilization Act (NRMA) required everyone age 16 or older to be listed on a national registry. Those on the registry could be called upon to support the war effort at any time.
- Mayor of Montréal Camillien Houde publicly opposed this registration, and was sent to internment camps as a result. When he was released in 1944, he was seen as a hero in Montréal.
- This letter from Houde to his wife shows how strictly censorship was enforced.
The 1940 National Resources Mobilization Act (NRMA) required everyone age 16 or older to be listed on a national registry. Those on the registry could be called upon to support the war effort at any time.
In August 1940, Mayor of Montréal Camillien Houde publicly opposed the federal government’s national registration. He was arrested by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and sent to internment camps in Petawawa, Ontario, and Fredericton, New Brunswick.
When he was freed in 1944, he was seen as a hero in Montréal.
This letter from Houde to his wife Georgianna shows how strictly censorship was enforced.
“I do not consider myself obliged to comply with this so-called law, and have no intention of doing so. I ask the population not to comply, either, knowing full well what I’m now doing, and what I’m exposing myself to.”
— Camillien Houde, Le Droit, August 6, 1940
The 1940 National Resources Mobilization Act (NRMA) exposed the breadth of government powers conferred by the War Measures Act. With the aim of fully mobilizing the workforce, the NRMA required everyone age 16 or older to be listed on a national registry. Those on the registry could be called upon to support the war effort at any time.
In August 1940, Mayor of Montréal Camillien Houde publicly opposed the federal government’s national registration. Arrested by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), Houde spent four years in internment camps in Petawawa, Ontario, and Fredericton, New Brunswick.
Freed on August 16, 1944, he returned to Montréal a hero.
This letter from Houde to his wife Georgianna shows how strictly censorship was enforced.
- The 1940 National Resources Mobilization Act (NRMA) required everyone age 16 or older to be listed on a national registry. Those on the registry could be called upon to support the war effort at any time.
- Mayor of Montréal Camillien Houde publicly opposed this registration, and was sent to internment camps as a result. When he was released in 1944, he was seen as a hero in Montréal.
- This letter from Houde to his wife shows how strictly censorship was enforced.
The 1940 National Resources Mobilization Act (NRMA) required everyone age 16 or older to be listed on a national registry. Those on the registry could be called upon to support the war effort at any time.
In August 1940, Mayor of Montréal Camillien Houde publicly opposed the federal government’s national registration. He was arrested by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and sent to internment camps in Petawawa, Ontario, and Fredericton, New Brunswick.
When he was freed in 1944, he was seen as a hero in Montréal.
This letter from Houde to his wife Georgianna shows how strictly censorship was enforced.
“I do not consider myself obliged to comply with this so-called law, and have no intention of doing so. I ask the population not to comply, either, knowing full well what I’m now doing, and what I’m exposing myself to.”
— Camillien Houde, Le Droit, August 6, 1940
The 1940 National Resources Mobilization Act (NRMA) exposed the breadth of government powers conferred by the War Measures Act. With the aim of fully mobilizing the workforce, the NRMA required everyone age 16 or older to be listed on a national registry. Those on the registry could be called upon to support the war effort at any time.
In August 1940, Mayor of Montréal Camillien Houde publicly opposed the federal government’s national registration. Arrested by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), Houde spent four years in internment camps in Petawawa, Ontario, and Fredericton, New Brunswick.
Freed on August 16, 1944, he returned to Montréal a hero.
This letter from Houde to his wife Georgianna shows how strictly censorship was enforced.
Summary
- The 1940 National Resources Mobilization Act (NRMA) required everyone age 16 or older to be listed on a national registry. Those on the registry could be called upon to support the war effort at any time.
- Mayor of Montréal Camillien Houde publicly opposed this registration, and was sent to internment camps as a result. When he was released in 1944, he was seen as a hero in Montréal.
- This letter from Houde to his wife shows how strictly censorship was enforced.
Essential
The 1940 National Resources Mobilization Act (NRMA) required everyone age 16 or older to be listed on a national registry. Those on the registry could be called upon to support the war effort at any time.
In August 1940, Mayor of Montréal Camillien Houde publicly opposed the federal government’s national registration. He was arrested by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and sent to internment camps in Petawawa, Ontario, and Fredericton, New Brunswick.
When he was freed in 1944, he was seen as a hero in Montréal.
This letter from Houde to his wife Georgianna shows how strictly censorship was enforced.
In-Depth
“I do not consider myself obliged to comply with this so-called law, and have no intention of doing so. I ask the population not to comply, either, knowing full well what I’m now doing, and what I’m exposing myself to.”
— Camillien Houde, Le Droit, August 6, 1940
The 1940 National Resources Mobilization Act (NRMA) exposed the breadth of government powers conferred by the War Measures Act. With the aim of fully mobilizing the workforce, the NRMA required everyone age 16 or older to be listed on a national registry. Those on the registry could be called upon to support the war effort at any time.
In August 1940, Mayor of Montréal Camillien Houde publicly opposed the federal government’s national registration. Arrested by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), Houde spent four years in internment camps in Petawawa, Ontario, and Fredericton, New Brunswick.
Freed on August 16, 1944, he returned to Montréal a hero.
This letter from Houde to his wife Georgianna shows how strictly censorship was enforced.