Alberta Premier Jason Kenney has launched an impassioned defence of Canadian historical figures. Asked Tuesday whether Calgary’s Sir John A. Macdonald school should be renamed, he acknowledged the flaws of Macdonald and others, but argued for a more nuanced response: I think Canada is worth celebrating. I think Canada is a great historical achievement. It is a country that people all around the world seek to join as new Canadians. It is an.
Salvatore Vistarchi of Montreal spent 33 months in an internment camp in Petawawa, Ont., during the Second World War without knowing why after the federal government labelled Italian-Canadians 'enemy aliens.'
In remarks before the House of Commons, Trudeau admitted that the government caused “pain and hardship,” for “those who were interned, their families, and the Italian Canadian community,” according to a press release from his office.
“Canadians of Italian heritage have helped shape Canada, and they continue to be an invaluable part of the diversity that makes us strong,” he said. “Today, as we acknowledge and address historical wrongs against the Italian Canadian community, we also show our respect for their great contributions to our country.”
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“To the men and women who were taken to prisoner of war camps or jail without charge, people who are no longer with us to hear this apology, to the tens of thousands of innocent Italian Canadians who were labeled enemy alien, to the children and grandchildren who have carried a past generation’s shame and hurt and to their community … We are sorry,” he added, according to The Washington Post.