The Chinese Immigration Act, 1923, also known as the "Chinese Exclusion Act" (the duration of which has been dubbed the Exclusion Era),[1] was a Canadian Act of Parliament passed by the government of Liberal Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King, banning most forms of Chinese immigration to Canada.[2][3] Immigration from most countries was controlled or restricted in some way, but only the Chinese were completely prohibited from immigrating to Canada.
Before 1923, Chinese immigration was heavily controlled by the Chinese Immigration Act of 1885, which imposed an onerous head tax on all immigrants from China.
After various members of the federal and some provincial governments (especially British Columbia) put pressure on the federal government to discourage Chinese immigration, the Chinese Immigration Act was passed. It went into effect on 1 July 1923. The Act banned immigrants of Chinese heritage from entering Canada except those under the following titles:
Because Canada became a signatory following World War II of the United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights, with which the Chinese Immigration Act was inconsistent, the Canadian Parliament repealed the act on 14 May 1947 (following the proclamation of the Canadian Citizenship Act, 1946 on 1 January 1947). However, independent Chinese immigration to Canada came only after the liberalization of Canadian immigration policy under the governments of John Diefenbaker and Lester Pearson, first by the elimination of restrictions based on national origins in 1962, followed by the establishment of the world's first points-based immigration system in 1967.[4]
Since the 1 July Dominion Day holiday coincided with the enforcement of the Chinese Immigration Act, Chinese-Canadians at the time referred to the anniversary of Confederation as "Humiliation Day" and refused to take any part in the celebration.[5][6][7]
On 22 June 2006, then-Prime MinisterStephen Harper apologized in the House of Commons.[8] The first phrase of the apology was spoken in Cantonese Chinese, despite the overwhelming number of affected Chinese who are versed in the Taishanese dialect. He announced that the survivors or their spouses will be paid approximately CA$20,000 in compensation for the head tax.
On 15 May 2014, then-Premier of British ColumbiaChristy Clark apologized in the Legislative Assembly.[9] The apology motion was unanimously passed and aims to make amends for historic wrongs. Unlike the federal apology, no individual compensation was provided. However, CA$1 million was promised to be put into a legacy fund which would help legacy initiatives. The formal apology went through a three-month consultation period with various parties to help ensure that the apology was done properly.
The centenary of the bill's commencement was marked on 1 July 2023; a national remembrance ceremony was held by the Senate on 23 June, while proclamations and memorial ceremonies were held in communities such as Calgary and Halifax.[5][6][7][12] The newly-founded Chinese Canadian Museum in Vancouver also opened to the public that day.[13][14]
