Comparison Of Racism In History

1117 Words3 Pages

Comparison of Racism in History

“ I have a dream... where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.';
-Martin Luther King Jr.

We have come a long way since the Civil Rights Movement in the United States. Our cities are filled with numerous minority groups with different religions and cultures. We live in a multicultural society where we don’t have to think about hate crime too much. We can feel safe when going to the corner store without being pasteurized by a mob of “haters';. We live in a very safe country, but instances during the World Wars make us pray that non-of that will ever happen in Canada again.

This ISP will examine the similarities and differences of racism and racial issues between a “true-story'; novel called Obasan, by Joy Kogawa, and a fictional play called “The Komagata Maru Incident';, by Sharon Pollock. Each story is set in a different period during Canada’s history: World War I and II.

In the play “The Komagata Maru Incident';, Sharon tells a story of the racist Canadian Government. The setting of the play is in Vancouver and it takes place right after World War I. It’s about a group of 376 East Indian Immigrants who sail to Canada to start a new life, but are not excepted due to the racist immigration officials. The immigrants had a right to be in Canada because they were British subjects, but Canada decided to shut their doors. This shows how cruel the people were at that time. Slowly the East Indian communities within Vancouver were beginning to get racist threats. The “whites'; complained about how the immigrants were taking over jobs because they were willing to work cheap. It is overwhelming to think that just because of a different race, it would mean non-whites couldn’t do what whites do: make a living.

In the novel Obasan, it describes the hardship of a young girl, Naomi, growing up in Vancouver, while in the midst World War II. During this period, her family was torn apart, due to government orders, and sent to camps or sugar beet farms in Alberta and Manitoba. The reason why there was so much focus around Naomi and other families like her was because her family was Japanese. It is so inconceivable to think that Ca...

... middle of paper ...

...nadian government was paranoid enough to single out a race.

The novel Obasan and play “The Komagata Maru Incident'; can be compared, but really shouldn’t be. The situations and level of racism are much too different to compare.

In conclusion, when looking at the exterior of a person, it is much too easy to get the wrong impression, due to their skin colour, religion, or culture. This leads to the mind scurrying up stereotypic ideas about that person. Too often are projections about a person are totally inaccurate. It’s unfortunate that by the time we find out there’s much more to that person, it’s too late. Can Canada ever learn from it’s mistakes from it’s past? Or will racial conflict occur in Canada lead into another war? It’s too hard to say. With all the similarities in the novel Obasan and the play “The Komagata Maru Incident';, it showed that racism is present in the past and will be in the future.
Bibliography

Kogawa, Joy. Obasan. Canada: Penguin Books, 1983.

Pollock, Sharon. “The Komagata Maru Incident';. Toronto: Playwrights Canada, 1978.

Open Document