By 1938 a small group of Canadians were aware that Germany's Nazi regime was following a policy of expelling Jews. In the years leading up to the Second World War the League of Nations Society in Canada sought to aid  these refugees. In late 1938 they realized they could no longer assist refugees and fulfill their other humanitarian obligations. In October 1938 the League of Nations Society in Canada executive voted to create a Canadian National Committee on Refugees and Victims of Political Persecution (CNCR).

This thesis is a study of their work and an examination of the ideas which motivated their members to action. It will outline the activities of the CNCR which included lobbying the Government to admit refugees, publishing literature on the refugee question and assistance of refugees upon arrival in Canada. It demonstrates that most members were motivated to this service by a belief in internationalism or in the social nature of Christianity.