Canada Day/Humiliation Day

On Canada Day, Linda and I visited the first exhibition at the new Chinese Canadian Museum on Pender Street. The exhibition, The Paper Trail, tells the story of the 1923 Chinese Immigration Act which banned Chinese immigration until 1947. 

It’s a story that my parents, who were born in Canada, never talked about. At the Museum, we learned that this was not unusual. Chinese Canadian families found the Exclusion Act too painful to discuss. They referred to Canada Day (then Dominion Day) as Humiliation Day – a day when Canadian born children of Chinese immigrants were told they didn’t belong in Canada.   Babies and young children were required to be registered with the Government of Canada. These registration certificates were, according to the Exhibition, “created to monitor, contain, discourage and ultimately exclude this one community”.   The certificates state: “This certificate does not establish legal status in Canada.”   I donated copies of my parents’ Certificates of Immigration to the exhibition and they are on display there until June 30, 2024. 

 The Paper Trail exhibition at the Chinese Canadian Museum is well worth a visit. I encourage you to take a guided tour to learn more about little known part of Canadian history.  Tours are offered on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. You can book timed tickets and tours online:   https://www.chinesecanadianmuseum.ca/exhibitions/paper-trail-1923-chinese-exclusion-act 

IMAGES IN THE TOP SCROLL

1.  My Mother’s Certificate of Immigration 

2.  My Father’s Certificate of Immigration 

Photos by Gordon Lee