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James Shaver Woodsworth
J. S. Woodsworth
Member of Parliament
for Winnipeg Centre (1921-1925); Winnipeg North Centre (1925-1942)
In office
1921 election – March 21, 1942
Preceded by George William Andrew
Succeeded by Stanley Knowles
Born July 29, 1874(1874-07-29)
Etobicoke, Ontario
Died March 21, 1942 (aged 67)
Political party CCF
Spouse Lucy Staples
Profession Author, lecturer, minister, secretary, social worker, teacher
Religion Methodism

James Shaver Woodsworth (July 29, 1874 – March 21, 1942) was a pioneer in the Canadian social democratic movement. Winnipeg Centre is a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1917 Winnipeg North Centre was a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that was represented by a Member of Parliament (MP in the Canadian The Canadian federal election of 1921 was held on December 6, 1921 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 14th Parliament Stanley Howard Knowles PC, OC, ( June 18, 1908 - June 9, 1997) was a Canadian parliamentarian Knowles Events 1014 - Byzantine-Bulgarian Wars: Battle of Kleidion: Byzantine emperor Basil II inflicts a decisive defeat Year 1874 ( MDCCCLXXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Ontario (ɒnˈtɛrioʊ is a province located in the central part of Canada, the largest by population and second largest after Quebec Events 630 - Byzantine emperor Heraclius restores the True Cross to Jerusalem. Year 1942 ( MCMXLII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Methodism is a movement within Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations Events 1014 - Byzantine-Bulgarian Wars: Battle of Kleidion: Byzantine emperor Basil II inflicts a decisive defeat Year 1874 ( MDCCCLXXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 630 - Byzantine emperor Heraclius restores the True Cross to Jerusalem. Year 1942 ( MCMXLII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page Social democracy is a Political ideology of the left and centre-left Following more than two decades ministering to the poor and the working class, J. S. Woodsworth left the church to lay the foundation for, and become the first leader of, the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation (CCF), a social democratic party which later became the New Democratic Party (NDP). The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF (French Fédération du commonwealth coopératif, then Parti social démocratique du Canada) was a Canadian Principles policies and electoral achievement The NDP grew from populist, agrarian and democratic socialist roots

Contents

Childhood

The oldest of six children, Woodsworth was born in Etobicoke Applewood Farm, near Toronto, Ontario, to Esther Josephine Shaver and James Woodsworth. Toronto (təˈrɒntoʊ colloquially pronounced or) is the largest city in Canada and is the provincial capital of Ontario Ontario (ɒnˈtɛrioʊ is a province located in the central part of Canada, the largest by population and second largest after Quebec Rev James Woodsworth, DD was in the late 1800s Superintendent of Methodist Missions in the North-West of Canada, which then included all four of today's His father was a Methodist minister, and his strong faith was a powerful factor in shaping his later life. Methodism is a movement within Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations His grandfather, Harold Richard Woodsworth, had opposed William Lyon Mackenzie in the 1837 Rebellions. William Lyon Mackenzie ( March 12, 1795 &ndash August 28, 1861) was a Canadian Journalist, Politician, and The Rebellions of 1837 were a pair of Canadian armed uprisings that occurred in 1837 and 1838 in response to frustrations in political reform and ethnic conflict As well, his maternal second great grandfather was a United Empire Loyalist. As a result, Woodsworth appreciated the value of both social responsibility and tradition. The word tradition comes from the Latin traditionem acc of traditio which means "a giving up delivering up surrendering" and is used in a number of

Early ministry

The Woodsworth family moved to Brandon, Manitoba in 1882, where his father became a Superintendent of Methodist Missions in western Canada. Brandon is a City in southwestern Manitoba, Canada. The surrounding area is often referred to as " Westman " Year 1882 ( MDCCCLXXXII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Following in his father's footsteps, J. S. was ordained as a Methodist minister in 1896 and spent two years as a circuit preacher in Manitoba before going to study at Victoria College in Toronto and at Oxford University in England. Year 1896 ( MDCCCXCVI) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year Victoria University ("Vic" for short is a Federated school of the University of Toronto, consisting of Victoria College and Emmanuel College The University of Oxford (informally "Oxford University" or simply "Oxford" located in the city of Oxford, Oxfordshire, England is the The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located While studying at Oxford University in 1899, he became interested in social welfare work. Year 1899 ( MDCCCXCIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common During his stay, the Second Boer War broke out, and Woodsworth was immersed in discussions about the moral values of imperialism. See also First Boer War,, South African Wars (1879-1915 The Second Boer War ( Dutch: Tweede Boerenoorlog, Afrikaans: Imperialism has two meanings one describing an action and the other describing an attitude In 1902, following his return to Canada, he took a position as pastor at Grace Church in Winnipeg, and in 1903, married Lucy Staples. Year 1902 ( MCMII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting Winnipeg (ˈwɪnɨpɛg is the capital and largest city in the Canadian province of Manitoba, and 7th largest municipality in Canada with a population Year 1903 ( MCMIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar or a Common year starting

In this role, he worked with the poor immigrants in Winnipeg and preached a social gospel that called for the Kingdom of God "here and now". Winnipeg (ˈwɪnɨpɛg is the capital and largest city in the Canadian province of Manitoba, and 7th largest municipality in Canada with a population The Social Gospel movement is a Protestant Christian intellectual movement that was most prominent in the late 19th century and early 20th century It was not long, however, before Woodsworth became restless as a minister. He had difficulty accepting Methodist dogma, and questioned the wisdom of the Church's emphasis on individual salvation without considering the social context in which an individual lived. Dogma (the plural is either dogmata or dogmas, Greek, plural) is the established Belief or In Theology, salvation can mean three related things being saved from or Liberation from something such as Suffering or the punishment of In a statement of explanation presented to the Manitoba Methodist Church Conference in 1907, he cited concerns with matters such as baptism, tests for those entering the Church, and fasting as a religious exercise. Year 1907 ( MCMVII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year He tendered his resignation, but it was refused and he was offered the opportunity to assume the Superintendency of All People's Mission in Winnipeg's North End. For six years he worked with the poor and immigrant families, and during this time, he wrote and campaigned for compulsory education, juvenile courts, the construction of playgrounds, and other initiatives in support of social welfare. Education encompasses both the Teaching and Learning of Knowledge, proper conduct, and technical competency "Social welfare" redirects here For other uses see Welfare A social welfare provision refers to any program which seeks to provide [1]

Early social activism

As a Mission worker, Woodsworth had the opportunity to see first hand the appalling circumstances in which many of his fellow citizens lived, and began writing the first of several books decrying the failure to provide workers with a living wage and arguing for the need to create a more egalitarian and compassionate state. In 1909, his Strangers Within Our Gates was published, followed in 1911 by My Neighbour. Year 1909 ( MCMIX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting Year 1911 ( MCMXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Both of these books remain basic reading in the history of social practice and reform in Canada. Woodsworth established The People's Forum in 1910, a twice-each-Sunday series of lectures, concerts, and discussions presented by various of Winnipeg's ethnic groups. Year 1910 ( MCMX) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting This series ran for seven years.

Woodsworth left All People's in 1913 to accept an appointment as Secretary of the Canadian Welfare League. Year 1913 ( MCMXIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common During this time he travelled extensively throughout the three Canadian prairie provinces, investigating social conditions, and writing and presenting lectures on his findings. The Canadian Prairies is a region in western Canada, which may correspond to several different definitions natural or political By 1914, he had become a socialist and an admirer of the British Labour Party. Year 1914 ( MCMXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year The Labour Party is a Political party in the United Kingdom. Founded at the start of the 20th century it has been since the 1920s the principal party of the

In 1916, during World War I, he was asked to support the National Services Registration, better known as "conscription". Year 1916 ( MCMXVI) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Conscription (also known as the draft, the call-up or national service) is a general term for involuntary labor demanded by some established authority As church ministers were being asked to preach about the duty of men to serve in the military, Woodsworth decided to publish his objections. A military is an Organization authorized by its Nation to use force usually including use of Weapons in defending its Country (or by attacking As a pacifist, he was morally opposed to the Church being used as a vehicle of recruitment, and was fired from his position with the Bureau of Social Research, where he was working at the time. Morality (from the Latin la moralitas "manner character proper behavior" has three principal meanings In 1917, he received his final pastoral posting to Gibson's Landing, BC. Year 1917 ( MCMXVII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Gibsons is a coastal community of 4000 located in southwestern British Columbia, Canada on the Strait of Georgia. British Columbia (ˌbrɪtɨʃ kəˈlʌmbiə ( BC) ( (la Colombie-Britannique C Woodsworth resigned from the Church in 1918 because of its support of the war. Year 1918 ( MCMXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common "I thought that as a Christian minister, I was a messenger of the Prince of Peace," he is quoted as saying. A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth Jesus of Nazareth (7–2 BC / BCE —26–36 AD / CE) 1 His resignation was accepted.

Political involvement

Woodsworth and his family moved to British Columbia, where, despite his slight stature, he took work as a stevedore. He joined the union, helped organize the Federated Labour Party of British Columbia, and wrote for the labor newspaper. A trade union or labour union is an organization of workers who have banded together to achieve common goals in key areas such as wages hours and working conditions forming

In 1919, he set out on a tour of Western Canada, arriving in Winnipeg just as the Winnipeg General Strike was underway. Year 1919 ( MCMXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Western Canada, commonly referred to as the West, is a region of Canada normally including all parts of Canada west of the province The Winnipeg General Strike of 1919 was one of the most influential strikes in Canadian history He immediately began presenting addresses at strike meetings. Strike action, often simply called a strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal by Employees to perform work. When the Royal Canadian Mounted Police charged into a crowd of strikers demonstrating in the centre of Winnipeg, killing one person and injuring 30, Woodsworth led the campaign of protest, and soon became involved in organising the Manitoba Independent Labour Party(ILP). There have been various groups in Canada that have nominated candidates under the label Labour Party or Independent Labour Party or other variations from the 1870s

Woodsworth briefly returned to British Columbia in 1920 to campaign as a Federated Labour Party candidate in Vancouver. Year 1920 ( MCMXX) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display 1920 of the Gregorian calendar Vancouver (vænˈkuːvɚ is a coastal He received 7444 votes, but was not elected to the provincial legislature.

He became editor of the Western Labour News. A week after the editor of the strike bulletin was arrested and charged with seditious libel, Woodsworth found himself in the same position, but was released on bail after five days' imprisonment, and the charges were never filed. This is about the law term For other uses see Sedition (disambiguation Sedition is a term of Law which refers to covert conduct These events were instrumental in establishing Woodsworth's credentials with the labour movement and in propelling him to a twenty-year tenure in public office. The labour movement or labor movement is a broad term for the development of a collective organization of working people, to campaign in their own interest for better Public administration can be broadly described as the development implementation and study of branches of government Policy. They also affirmed his beliefs in the importance of social activism. Activism, in a general sense can be described as intentional action to bring about social or political change

In December 1921, Woodsworth was elected as the Independent Labour Party Member of Parliament for the riding of Winnipeg North, a constituency he served until his death. Year 1921 ( MCMXXI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full 1921 calendar of the Gregorian calendar There have been various groups in Canada that have nominated candidates under the label Labour Party or Independent Labour Party or other variations from the 1870s A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters to a Parliament. An electoral district (also known as a Constituency or a riding in the Canadian English political Jargon) is a geographically-based A constituency is any cohesive corporate unit or body bound by shared structures goals or loyalty Death is the termination of the biological functions that define living Organisms It refers both to a specific The first bill he proposed concerned unemployment insurance and, even though he was informed by the Clerk of the House of Commons that bills involving federal spending had to be presented by the government, he nonetheless continued to press his case for constitutional reform. Unemployment benefits are payments made by Governments to unemployed people The House of Commons (Chambre des communes is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign (represented by the Governor General) and Fourteen years later, in some , the government agreed to strike a committee to discuss possible constitutional reforms. Year 1935 ( MCMXXXV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. During this time, Woodsworth was an unflagging advocate for the worker, the farmer, and the immigrant. An advocate is one who speaks on behalf of another person especially in a legal context

Rejecting violent revolution and any association with the new Communist Party of Canada, Woodsworth became a master of parliamentary procedure and used the House of Commons as a public platform. History Origins The Communist Party was organized with great secrecy in a barn near the city of Guelph Ontario, on May 28 and 29 1921 Parliamentary procedure is the body of Rules Ethics, and Customs governing meetings and other operations of Clubs Organizations He sat with the Progressive Party of Canada and was a leader of its radical faction, the Ginger Group. The Progressive Party of Canada was a political party in Canada in the 1920s and 1930s The Ginger Group was not a formal political party in Canada, but a faction of radical Progressive and Labour Members of Parliament

When the Canadian Liberal Party nearly lost the 1925 election, Woodsworth was able to bargain his vote in the House for a promise from the Liberal government to enact an old age pension plan. The Liberal Party of Canada ( Parti libéral du Canada) colloquially known as the Grits (originally " Clear Grits " is a major Canadian political The Canadian federal election of 1925 was held on October 29 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 15th Parliament of Canada. A pension is a steady income given to a person upon Retirement, typically in the form of a guaranteed annuity. Introduced in 1927, the plan is the cornerstone of Canada's social security system. Year 1927 ( MCMXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Social security primarily refers to a Social insurance program providing social protection or protection against socially recognized conditions including poverty old In 1932, Woodsworth toured Europe as a member of the League of Nations Assembly in Geneva. Year 1932 ( MCMXXXII) was a Leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. The League of Nations was an International organization founded as a result of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919–1920 Geneva (Genève is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and is the most populous city of Romandy (the French -speaking

J.S. and Lucy Woodsworth in the late 1930s
J. S. and Lucy Woodsworth in the late 1930s

Formation of the CCF

When the Great Depression struck, Woodsworth and the ILP joined with various other labour and socialist groups in 1932 to found a new socialist party, the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF), with Woodsworth as its first leader. Year 1932 ( MCMXXXII) was a Leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF (French Fédération du commonwealth coopératif, then Parti social démocratique du Canada) was a Canadian Woodsworth said: "I am convinced that we may develop in Canada a distinctive type of Socialism. I refuse to follow slavishly the British model or the American model or the Russian model. We in Canada will solve our problems along our own lines. "

In 1933, the CCF became the official opposition in British Columbia and, in 1934, the party achieved the same result in Saskatchewan. Year 1933 ( MCMXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Year 1934 ( MCMXXXIV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display full 1934 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Saskatchewan (səˈskætʃəwən) is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of 588276 In the 1935 election, seven CCF Members of Parliament were returned to the House of Commons and the party captured 8. The Canadian federal election of 1935 was held on October 14, 1935 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 18th Parliament 9 percent of the popular vote. The CCF, however, was never able to seriously challenge Canada's two party system. In particular, the enormous prestige of the long-time Liberal Prime Minister, William Lyon Mackenzie King, prevented the CCF from displacing the Liberals as the main party of the left, as had happened in Britain, Australia and New Zealand. William Lyon Mackenzie King PC OM CMG ( December 17, 1874 – July 22, 1950) was a Canadian The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island

In 1939, the majority of CCF members refused to support Woodsworth's opposition to Canada's entry into World War II. Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including During the debate on the declaration of war, Mackenzie King said: "There are few men in this Parliament for whom I have greater respect than the leader of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation. I admire him in my heart, because time and again he has had the courage to say what lays on his conscience, regardless of what the world might think of him. A man of that calibre is an ornament to any Parliament. "

Nevertheless, Woodsworth was almost alone in his opposition to the war, and his days as a party leader were over. He was re-elected to the House but in September 1940, but suffered a stroke in the fall and, over the next 18 months, his health deteriorated. Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. He died in Vancouver, British Columbia in early 1942, and his ashes were scattered in the Strait of Georgia. Vancouver (vænˈkuːvɚ is a coastal British Columbia (ˌbrɪtɨʃ kəˈlʌmbiə ( BC) ( (la Colombie-Britannique C Year 1942 ( MCMXLII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Strait of Georgia or the Georgia Strait (also known as the Gulf of Georgia) is a Strait between Vancouver Island (as well as its nearby

Woodsworth's daughter, Grace MacInnis, followed in his footsteps as a CCF politician. Winona Grace MacInnis (née Woodsworth ( July 25 1905 - July 10 1991) was a Canadian politician and feminist.

Woodsworth's legacy

J. S. Woodsworth strongly influenced Canadian social policy, and many of the social concepts he pioneered are represented in contemporary programs such as social assistance and medicare, which are deemed to be fundamentally important in Canadian society today. While the party for which he was central founder, today called the New Democratic Party, has largely abandoned Woodsworth's vision of a socialist Canada, Woodsworth's memory is still held in great respect within the party, and across Canada. Principles policies and electoral achievement The NDP grew from populist, agrarian and democratic socialist roots

Woodsworth College of the University of Toronto, and J. S. Woodsworth Secondary School in Ottawa, Ontario (closed in 2005) are named after him. Woodsworth College, named after politician and clergyman James Shaver Woodsworth ( 1874 - 1942) is a college within the University of Toronto This article is about the University of Toronto's St George Campus J S Woodsworth Secondary School was a high school in the Parkwood Hills neighborhood of Ottawa (formerly Nepean Ottawa (ˈɒtəwə or sometimes /ˈɒtəwɑː/ is the Capital of Canada and the country's fourth largest municipality. Ontario (ɒnˈtɛrioʊ is a province located in the central part of Canada, the largest by population and second largest after Quebec Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. There is also a housing co-operative in downtown Toronto named after him. The Ontario Woodsworth Memorial Foundation merged with the Douglas-Coldwell Foundation in 1987. The Douglas-Coldwell Foundation is a Canadian Think tank devoted in the words of its slogan to "promoting education and research into Social democracy Year 1987 ( MCMLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar)

In 2004, a CBC contest rated Woodsworth as the 100th Greatest Canadian of all time. Officially launched on April 5, 2004, The Greatest Canadian was a television program series by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC to

First Leader

 CCF leaders

Succeeded by:
Major Coldwell

Further reading

"A Prophet in Politics: A Biography of J. S. Woodsworth" (1959) Kenneth McNaught, University of Toronto Press, Toronto, Ontario

External links

References

  1. ^ Details of subsequent work at All Peoples' Mission is documented in an MA Thesis by Shirley F. Payment: "The Big Project: James M. Shaver at All Peoples' Mission, Winnipeg, 1921-1941". The author has granted permission to access the thesis via http://reimer.concordia.ca/shaver/Documents/PaymentJamesMShaverThesis2000MQ51783[1]. pdf
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