After the Influx: Canadians Respond to World Refugee Year, 1959–60

In late 1958, the United Nations General Assembly declared that 1959–60 would be recognized as World Refugee Year (wry). While this came a decade after the influx of the post-Second World War movement of refugees and displaced persons, it was initiated to deal with a growing worldwide refugee crisis, including a lingering population of refugees in Europe. The Canadian Committee for World Refugee Year was established in 1959 to respond to the un-declared special year. This article surveys the activities of wry in Canada, demonstrating that the engagement of Canadians with wry reveals a reluctant federal government, a broadly democratic national endeavour, and a grassroots movement of civil society actors committed to improve the lot of the world’s stateless and homeless. The attitudes of many Canadians as individuals or, represented by non-governmental agencies, as revealed in concrete action, demonstrate the positive role of civil society in social and political action. While some of the activities of wry reflected a condescending and colonialist mindset towards marginalized peoples, they also pointed to an emerging openness on the part of ordinary Canadians to refugee immigrants from across the globe.