‘I Do Think We Can Carry On’: The Women’s War Efforts Committee of the Canadian Jewish Congress, 1939-1946
Open Access
- 31 December 2019
- journal article
- Published by York University Libraries in Canadian Jewish Studies / Études juives canadiennes
Abstract
The Jewish community’s involvement in the Canadian war effort during the Second World War has been a topic of scholarly interest for decades. However, this scholarship has largely focused on the activities of men, whether as soldiers or members of volunteer organizations, most notably the Canadian Jewish Congress (CJC). When women’s contributions are noted, it has generally been a mention of undefined volunteer work or their activities as soldiers’ wives and mothers, thus ignoring the monumental efforts of Jewish women. In particular, the Women’s War Efforts Committee (WWEC) of the CJC contributed thousands of hours of unpaid labour, fundraising, running a Next-of-Kin League for the wives, mothers, and children of enlisted men, and working with other women’s organizations for the war effort. However, it was their work on massive projects such as the furnishing of recreation spaces on armed forces bases and the opening of Servicemen’s Centres across Canada that would be most impactful. This paper will explore how the activities of the WWEC increased the visibility of the Jewish community in Canada and contributed to changing the public perception of Jews from that of an unwanted immigrant community to that of an accepted minority group. It will also examine the tensions between the men and women of the CJC and the shifting public roles of women within the Jewish community.Keywords
This publication has 7 references indexed in Scilit:
- Claiming Equality for Canadian Jewry: The Struggle for Inclusion, 1930–1945Published by Walter de Gruyter GmbH ,2012
- Imposing Their WillPublished by Walter de Gruyter GmbH ,2011
- “Life is Sweet”: Vulnerability and Composure in the Wartime Narratives of Japanese CanadiansJournal of Canadian Studies, 2009
- 5. 'We weren't allowed to go into factory work until Hitler started the war7: The 1920s to the 1940sPublished by University of Toronto Press Inc. (UTPress) ,1994
- Race and Recruitment in World War I: Enlistment of Visible Minorities in the Canadian Expeditionary ForceCanadian Historical Review, 1989
- She Also Served: Bringing to Light the Contributions of the Canadian Jewish Servicewomen of World War IICanadian Jewish Studies / Études juives canadiennes, 1969
- The Jews in ManitobaPublished by University of Toronto Press Inc. (UTPress) ,1961