Madam Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I rise today to speak to Motion No. 310 which urges branches of the Royal Canadian Legion which do not permit Jews and Sikhs to wear religious head dress in their branches to reconsider this discriminatory practice.
As my hon. colleague for Windsor-St. Clair suggests in her motion, all members of the legion must have access to legion facilities without having to choose between their legion affiliation and their religious belief.
As most of us know, the Royal Canadian Legion does excellent work among other worthy things in perpetuating the memory and deeds of the fallen. Founded in 1925 by Field Marshall Haig, the Canadian Legion of the British Empire Service League was organized to bring veterans' concerns to the attention of government.
In 1960 the organization was renamed the Royal Canadian Legion and continues to this day to act as an intermediary between veterans and government.
Today, the Royal Canadian Legion is made up of 1,720 branches and has over 570,000 members. The mere mention of the Legion conjures up the poppy campaign, the November 11 parades as well as the design and literary contest for high school students. Indeed, the Legion has taken on the task of bringing together, within a democratic and non partisan association, the men and women who fought in the various branches of the Armed Forces.
However, the non partisan nature of the Legion has been put in question by the unfortunate incident where Sikh veterans were denied access to Legion facilities for refusing to take off their turbans. In trying to deal with subsequent allegations of racism, the Dominion Command of the Canadian Legion put forth a resolution to amend the rule concerning the wearing of the Jewish kipa and the Sikh turban inside Legion facilities. It read in part as follows:
Once a person who is required to wear a head-dress for (the Jewish and Sikh) faiths has been accepted as a Legion member, they are to be authorized admission to all areas of that branch that are opened to the general membership or invited guests.
Unfortunately at the general assembly in May last year more than 75 per cent of the legion's delegates voted down this resolution. In so doing they placed in jeopardy the non-sectarian nature of the legion. Those who voted to maintain a ban on head-dress within legion premises refused to depart from a principle to the effect that wearing a hat shows disrespect to the fallen. The national president was so outraged he immediately resigned.
Fortunately not all members of the legion have similar narrow views. A letter published in the February 1994 issue of The Legion reminds legion members of the spirit of friendship and camaraderie that is supposed to be found in legion halls. It states:
It seems to me some of my comrades have forgotten that one of the things they fought for was democracy and within that democracy is the right to practise religion. If, in so doing, it means that uncovering one's head would be an offence to one's god, then why should we be affronted? These people are not slighting the memory of those who paid the greatest sacrifice for freedom. Instead, we should be open minded enough to remember that some Sikh veterans fought in the same campaigns with great distinction, and wish the fellowship of their comrades in a Legion branch without being harassed by close minded discrimination.
[Translation]
In an effort to appease the strong public outcry against the proposed motion being rejected, the Dominion Command urged Legion branches to reconsider their decision. I am pleased to report to this House that almost 90 per cent of the branches have now passed motions recognizing the important contribution of Jewish and Sikh servicemen in the world wars and, consequently, repealed their discriminatory policy on religious head-dress. Unfortunately, another 10 per cent did not.
It is important to state once again that Canadians of various religious backgrounds, including Jews and Sikhs, have in the past served and continue to serve with great distinction in Canadian and other Commonwealth forces. Their faith did not prevent them from serving and dying for their country.
In the second world war alone, 10,235 Canadian Jews served in the army, another 5,889 in the Royal Canadian Air Force and yet another 596 in the navy. I am sad to remind the House that 429 Canadian Jews were killed in action from 1939 to 1945, over 200 were wounded and 84 were made prisoners of war. In recognition of their valuable contribution to the war effort almost 200 Jewish soldiers were decorated.
Should not all veterans regardless of their gender, ethnic origins and religious affiliation receive fair and equal treatment by the Royal Canadian Legion?
By refusing to adopt a resolution permitting Jews and Sikhs to wear their religious head-dress on legion premises, some members of the legion have shown themselves to be insensitive to the Canadian reality and to the members they are supposed to represent.
Canada is not a monolithic society. Unfortunately some are still unwilling to acknowledge our cultural and religious reality. Some branches of the legion have adopted regulations that may contravene Canadian and provincial human rights legislation. These branches need to be reminded that Canada has a long and well respected tradition of tolerance. The legion should reflect upon its decision and its actions in this light.
It is sad that in 1995 some still do not accept and respect our rich and diverse cultural and religious traditions. We must continue to work toward better understanding among all Canadians, not the opposite. This debate is extremely important for it causes us to reflect on the work that remains to be done; too much work unfortunately.
Members of the branches that have banned religious head-dress must be made aware that the kipa is not a hat to a conservative Jew. He does not wear it for vanity but in order to observe a religious injunction to cover one's head before God. With respect to the turban it is more than a simple regalia to an orthodox Sikh. It is a powerful symbol of the mystery which binds the man to his faith.
Incredibly during the Calgary Stampede some branches allow their members to drink beer and socialize with their 10-gallon cowboy hats fitted nicely on their heads. The rationale behind this exemption is: What would the stampede be without our cowboy hats? Why do some legion branches believe that a legion member who wears a 10-gallon hat in the legion hall during stampede is only following tradition, while a Jew who wears a kipa or a Sikh who wears a turban is showing disrespect for the fallen.
I am concerned that Jews and Sikhs are being denied entry by some branches because some legion members are uncomfortable with fellow members who look a little different or whose headgear may demonstrate that they are a little different. These members think that maybe they do not belong. They belong as much as any other Canadian. Our differences do not divide us; they enrich us.
We each have a duty to denounce all forms of discrimination. Ironically it is in our own self-interest to do so. The Protestant theologian Neimoller said after World War II:
When the Nazis came to get the gypsies I did not say anything because I was not a gypsy. When they came to get the communists I did not say anything because I was not a communist. When they came to get the Jews I did not say anything because I was not a Jew. When they came to get me there was no one left to stand up for me.
We have a moral obligation to strive to understand one another as a people. Whether a Jew wears a kipa, a Sikh a turban, a Calgarian a cowboy hat or a Torontonian a Blue Jays cap, we are all Canadian citizens and have a right to express our beliefs without fear of discrimination.
I urge branches of the Royal Canadian Legion which prevent members from wearing a religious head-dress to reconsider
their position so that they foster a climate of tolerance and understanding. I believe the legion should be an agent for tolerance and understanding within Canadian society. I am only surprised that this is not universally the case.
The legion should never forget the principles its members fought and died for. The legion, as should all Canadians, should remember the eloquent words spoken by our Prime Minister on the beaches of Normandy for the 50th anniversary of D-Day:
In death they are not anglophones or francophones, not from the west or from the east, not Christians or Jews, nor aboriginal people or immigrants. They were Canadians.
They died as Canadians and I think some branches of the legion insult the memory of these Canadians by excluding other veterans from legion posts.
