Anti-Semitism
Although there are various reports of school yard discrimination and xenophobia in the early 1930s, most respondents in the oral histories recall a relatively high level of integration between Jews and their neighbours in the towns of Fort William and Port Arthur. Oral accounts indicate that in the 1930s membership was prohibited to Jews at the West Loon Lake Campers Association, a popular spot for summer cottagers. However, this restriction was short lived.
Saul Laskin recalled going with his mother on occasion to Eastern Orthodox Catholic services, because she felt it was important for her boys to understand how their neighbours lived. Port Arthur, in particular, with its very large influx of new immigrants was recalled as a place where ethnic discrimination was simply not tolerated. Many members of B’nai Brith were also extremely active in the Masons. The high level of integration was also exhibited in the reciprocal charity arrangements between Hadassah and local Christian women’s groups, which often co-organized events such as rummage sales, teas and charity fashion shows.
