Religious Refugees
by Matthew Wangler, research consultant
Government decisions greatly influenced the immigration
and settlement experiences of the Mennonites, Doukhobors and Mormons. Negotiations
and disagreements between these groups and both federal and provincial governments
-- over such issues as education, landholding and religious practices -- were
essential in determining the place of each community within the Canadian political
context.
Before emigrating from Russia to Canada in 1874, the Mennonites arranged a
delegation to inspect the land and secure promises from the Canadian government
about issues like military exemptions and the right to teach their children the
German language and the Mennonite faith. In the decades that followed, multiple
versions of these promises and confusion over matters of jurisdiction and interpretation
would lead to serious conflicts between some members of the Mennonite community
and the federal and provincial governments.
The Mormons who settled in southern Alberta in 1887 came
without special privileges. Once there, however, they lobbied the government for
concessions on cultural and economic matters. Exiled from the United States because
of that country's harsh anti-polygamy Edmunds Act, some Alberta Mormons
unsuccessfully lobbied the Canadian government for the right to bring their plural
families from Utah to their new homes. As well, they sought privileges in the
use of natural resources and in the payment of tariffs. The government refused
their requests.
In the late 1890s, intermediaries like Dr. James Mavor
of the University of Toronto represented the Doukhobors in their negotiations
with the Canadian government. Through these middlemen, the Doukhobors were granted
formal military exemption. However, other matters of great concern -- like the
freedom to farm communally and exemption from the swearing of oaths -- were not
officially guaranteed and would remain contentious issues.
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