History of Canada The Nuclear Bomb, the Cold War and the Voice of Women

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History of CanadaThe Nuclear Bomb, the Cold War
and the Voice of Women

• At 0815 on 6 August 1945, the Allied Forces
  dropped the 12,000 ton atomic bomb Little Boy
  on Hiroshima, Japan. Over 80,000 civilians were
  killed from the blast.
• On 9 August 1945, the city of Nagasaki was
  destroyed by a second nuclear bomb called Fat
  Boy. Over 75,000 civilians died immediately.
• Over the years, over 100,000 people have died
  from complications of radiation exposure.
• Japan surrendered on 15 August 1945, and WWII was
  over.
• The world had entered into Nuclear Warfare.

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History of CanadaThe Nuclear Bomb, the Cold War
and the Voice of Women

• In 1945 the United Nations (UN) is formed.
• A primary UN objective was establishing
  democratic governments in all liberated
  countries. The USSR stalls the transfer of power
  to the Polish Government, and as such, Poland is
  not represented at the UN.
• The Cold War begins. The new world superpowers
  USA and USSR seek new resources for their
  expanding empires.
• In Canada, a Soviet spy ring was uncovered
  during the 1945 Goushenko Affair.
• The USSR occupies much of liberated Eastern
  Europe. In 1948, the Soviet Union supported a
  communist takeover of Czechoslovakia. In 1956,
  The Soviet Union invaded and occupied Hungary,
  and in 1968, the Soviets invaded Czechoslovakia
  to stop political reforms.

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History of CanadaThe Nuclear Bomb, the Cold War
and the Voice of Women

• In 1948, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization
  (NATO) was formed to united the defenses of the
  democracies of Western Europe, USA and Canada
  against the spreading Soviet Union influence.
• In 1957, Canada unveiled the Avro Arrow jet
  fighter to intercept Soviet bombers. On the same
  day, the Soviet introduced Sputnik and the
  intercontinental missile.
• In 1958, the joint USA-Canada North American
  Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) was established
  to protect North American airspace against a
  Soviet bomber attack.
• For NORAD, the USA wants Canada to adopts the
  Bomarc Missile. On 20 February 1959 (Black
  Friday), Canadian Prime Minister John Diefenbaker
  cancels the Arrow.
• Canada accepts the USA Bomarc missiles in 1960
  WITHOUT nuclear warheads.
• The Liberals win the 1963 federal election and
  accept the nuclear warheads. For a short period,
  Canada has nuclear bombs.

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History of CanadaThe Nuclear Bomb, the Cold War
and the Voice of Women

• The Voice of Women was formed in 1960. Canadian
  women (1) feared the possibility of nuclear war
  and (2) questioned nuclear testing with respect
  to endangering their children's lives.
• Writing in the Toronto Star, Columnist Lotta
  Dempsey asked women to contact her if they were
  willing to do something about the nuclear threat.
  Hundreds replied, and four women, Jo Davis,
  Dorothy Henderson, Helen Tucker and Beth Touzel,
  met with Dempsey. Soon afterwards, The Voice of
  Women was founded.
• Thousands joined. They paid a membership fee of
  2.00, and in return they received bi-monthly
  newsletters urging them to form small groups,
  share ideas and encourage other women to join.

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History of CanadaThe Nuclear Bomb, the Cold War
and the Voice of Women

• In 1962, VOW organized an international
  conference in St Donat, Quebec to (1) form a
  worldwide partnership and (2) ask the United
  Nations to declare an International Year of
  Peace. The latter was proclaimed as International
  Co-operation Year in 1965.
• VOW pressured the Canadian Government to support
  the international appeal for a Nuclear Test Ban
  Treaty resulting in the partial test ban in 1963.
• VOW collected thousands of children's baby teeth
  for testing of Strontium 90 content.
• VOW traveled to Moscow to meet with Russian women
  in defiance of the Cold War.
• In opposition to the Vietnam War, VOW brought
  women from Vietnam to tour Canada on a well
  organized public speaking tour and meet with
  American women at border points across the
  country at mass rallies.

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History of CanadaThe Nuclear Bomb, the Cold War
and the Voice of Women

• In 1977, VOW was granted Observer Status at the
  United Nations.
• In 1985, VOW organized the Women's International
  Peace Conference called "The Urgency for True
  Security Women's Alternatives for Negotiating
  Peace. Over 350 women from 33 countries
  attended the conference in Halifax. The women
  re-appropriated the word "security" defining it
  away from the military.
• Today, VOW holds lectures, vigils,
  demonstrations, etc. protesting war events such
  as the Gulf Wars, the war in Kosovo and the war
  in Afghanistan.

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History of CanadaThe Nuclear Bomb, the Cold War
and the Voice of Women

• VOW has five primary objectives
• To unite women in concern for the future of the
  world,
• To help promote the mutual respect and
  cooperation among nations necessary for peaceful
  negotiations between world partners,
• To protest war or the threat of war as the
  decisive method of exercising power,
• To appeal to all national leaders to cooperate in
  the alleviation of the causes of war by common
  action for the economic and social betterment of
  all, and
• To provide a means for women to exercise
  responsibility for the family of humankind.

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History of CanadaThe Nuclear Bomb, the Cold War
and the Voice of Women

• Why is VOW important?
• For the first time, Canadian women worked
  together for a political cause.
• Canadian women united as a powerful force and
  recognized that their efforts can shape Canadian
  society.
• The feminist movement arose from the ideas of
  unity, working together and strength. As such,
  VOWs actions helped to redefine the role of
  women in Canadian society
• VOW is active today. An example is the Raging
  Grannies.