By March 31, 2008, the Government of Canada had identified 785 surviving head tax payers and their spouses and paid them each $20,000 as compensation. Prime Minister Stephen Harper makes an official apology in the House of Commons to Chinese Canadians for more than six decades of legislated racism against them through the <i>Head Tax and Exclusion Act</i>. Ontario Superior Court justice dismisses a class action asking for compensation for the <i>Head Tax and Exclusion Act</i>, but also states that the Government of Canada has a moral obligation to redress Chinese Canadians. The Chinese Canadian National Council surveys the Chinese Canadian community and registers more than 4,000 head tax payers, their spouses and descendants and launches a campaign for an apology and redress. Two elderly Chinese head tax payers, Dak Leon Mark and Shack Yee, meet with MP Margaret Mitchell (Vancouver East) and ask for help in getting a refund and redress for the $500 head tax they both paid to enter Canada. With the proclamation of the <i>Charter of Rights</i> and Freedoms, the fundamental rights of all people in Canada are entrenched in our Constitution. Two elderly Chinese head tax payers, Dak Leon Mark and Shack Yee, meet with MP Margaret Mitchell (Vancouver East) and ask for help in getting a refund and redress for the $500 head tax they both paid to enter Canada. The Chinese Canadian National Council forms as part of the community's response to gross misrepresentation in a national news report. Chinese Canadian lawyer Kew Dock Yip teams up with Jewish civil rights lawyer Irving Himel to repeal the <i>Chinese Exclusion Act</i>. Kew Dock Yip, a son of Vancouver merchant Yip Sang, is called to the Ontario Bar, becoming the first Chinese Canadian lawyer. The <i>Chinese Exclusion Act</i> comes into force on Dominion Day in 1923. The <i>Chinese Exclusion Act</i> comes into force on Dominion Day in 1923. Further amendments to the <i>Chinese Immigration Act</i> quintuple the head tax on Chinese to $500 to discourage individual and family settlement in Canada. Amendments to the <i>Chinese Immigration Act</i> double the head tax on Chinese immigrants to $100. The federal government assigns the Royal Commission on Chinese Immigration and later levies a $50 head tax on all Chinese immigrants. The federal government assigns the Royal Commission on Chinese Immigration and later levies a $50 head tax on all Chinese immigrants. Further amendments to the <i>Chinese Immigration Act</i> quintuple the head tax on Chinese to $500 to discourage individual and family settlement in Canada. The driving of the 'last spike' into a railway tie at Craigellachie, B.C., marks the completion of the mainline of the CPR and connects Canada to British Columbia. Thousands of Chinese are recruited by the Canadian Pacific Railway to build the western section of the transcontinental railroad through the Rocky Mountains. Thousands of Chinese are recruited by the Canadian Pacific Railway to build the western section of the transcontinental railroad through the Rocky Mountains. The Fraser Valley Gold Rush in British Columbia attracts the first major migration of Chinese to lands that later become Canada. Kew Dock Yip, a son of Vancouver merchant Yip Sang, is called to the Ontario Bar, becoming the first Chinese Canadian lawyer. Amendments to the <i>Chinese Immigration Act</i> double the head tax on Chinese immigrants to $100. The driving of the 'last spike' into a railway tie at Craigellachie, B.C., marks the completion of the mainline of the CPR and connects Canada to British Columbia. The Fraser Valley Gold Rush in British Columbia attracts the first major migration of Chinese to lands that later become Canada. Chinese Canadian lawyer Kew Dock Yip teams up with Jewish civil rights lawyer Irving Himel to repeal the <i>Chinese Exclusion Act</i>. The Chinese Canadian National Council forms as part of the community's response to gross misrepresentation in a national news report. Prime Minister Stephen Harper makes an official apology in the House of Commons to Chinese Canadians for more than six decades of legislated racism against them through the <i>Head Tax and Exclusion Act</i>.

Chinese Canadian Legal History Quiz

Test your knowledge of Chinese Canadian legal history!

  1. How long have Chinese been in Canada?
  2. Who is the first person of Chinese descent to be born in Canada?
  3. What is the Chinese Head Tax?
  4. Why did the Canadian Government pass the Chinese Exclusion Act?
  5. What was the most significant impact of the Chinese Exclusion Act on the Chinese Canadian community?
  6. Why did early Chinese Canadians refer to July 1st as Humiliation Day?
  7. Why was there no Chinese Canadian lawyer until after the Second World War and how has this hindered the development of the community?
  8. Who is the first Chinese Canadian lawyer and what role did he play in Chinese Canadian history?
  9. How have the courts in Canada dealt with racist laws targeting people of Chinese descent?
  10. What was the first reported court case in which a Chinese Canadian challenged the Canadian citizenship law?
  11. What was the Chinese Tax Act and what was the purpose of this piece of legislation?
  12. Who is the first Chinese Canadian Member of Parliament and what was his contribution to immigration reform in Canada?
  13. Who is Andy Joe?
  14. How did the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms affect the redress campaign for the Chinese Head Tax and Chinese Exclusion Act?
  15. Name the three plaintiffs in the first class action lawsuit filed on behalf of the Chinese Canadian community and what was the lawsuit about?
  16. Is redress for the Chinese Canadian community complete?

 

Suggestions for educators using the website as a teaching tool:

  • Create other quizzes based on the website content
  • Engage class in a class discussion about Canada’s past immigration policy and how it has evolved over time
  • Design a class project based on one or more of the various topics on the website
  • Encourage further research on a specific case or statute affecting Chinese Canadians
  • Do a history photo project based on certain historical events

 

Answers to the quiz can be found here.

Early Chinese Worker Militancy in BC: Excavating Narratives of Resistance
The “last spike” has been found!
10 Year Anniversary of Parliamentary Apology
Road to Justice Travelling Exhibit Launched at Toronto City Hall
Canadian Government clawed back community fund to commemorate Chinese Head Tax and Exclusion Act
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Chinese Canadian Legal History Quiz
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