Creativity, Community, and Memory Building: Interned Jewish Refugees in Canada During and After World War II

In May of 1940, a wartime British government arrested those deemed “enemy aliens” and transferred them to safe areas of the country. Over 2000 of these “enemy aliens” were Jewish German and Austrian men. On June 29, 1940, the first group of Jewish refugees was sent to internment camps in Canada. This thesis explores three different examples of memory and community to illustrate the development of the internees’ search for meaning during and post-internment. Artwork created in the camps, a series of letters between ex-internees, and several issues of the Ex-Internees Newsletter are the focus of this study. Social network analysis tools are used to visualize the post-internment internee network. By looking at diverse aspects of the internment narrative, this thesis provides a unique lens into the conversation on memory and history.