In memory of those British Columbians who served in the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion of the International Brigades during the Spanish Civil War, 1936-1939

Since the end of the Spanish Civil War, the federal government has never commissioned a monument to honour Canadians who fought in Spain. Despite this decision, groups and individuals have gathered resources to erect plaques and monuments about Canadian veterans of the Spanish Civil War. The decision to build a monument or create a plaque indicates a willingness to remember the sacrifices of those who joined a worthy cause, defeating fascist forces in Spain.  

There are few monuments about the Spanish Civil War in the country, and veterans of the Mackenzie-Papineau battalion and their supporters were often the instigators. The first commemoration was a plaque, unveiled in 1989 and located at City Hall in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The second public commemoration was a plaque located near the Ontario Provincial Legislative building in Toronto in 1995. A plaque and a statue near the British Columbia Legislature were unveiled in Victoria, three years later. Finally, a statue in honour of the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion, located in the National Capital, was revealed to the public in 2001. This entry is about the plaque, located in the British Columbia Legislative building in Victoria, because of the strong reactions that it triggered in 1998. 

The New Democratic Party (NDP) government of British Columbia led by Glen Clark agreed to support a proposal by the B.C. Memorial Committee Veterans and Friends of the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion to honour the memory of Canadians who fought during the Spanish Civil War. Besides a monument, the proposal included a plaque installed in the Upper Rotunda of the legislative building. The text of the plaque reads: “In memory of those British Columbians who served in the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion of the International Brigades during the Spanish Civil War, 1936-1939.” During the public ceremony attended by veterans of the Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion in December 1998, Premier Clark portrayed Canadian veterans as “forgotten war heroes,” who tried, “to overcome fascism.” This ceremony triggered strong reactions, notably from members of the Royal Canadian Legion, an organization which supports war veterans, in British Columbia. The president of the local legion reminded the provincial government that Canadians who went to Spain were not worth commemorating since it was illegal at the time to fight in foreign wars.  

This episode over the commemoration of the role that Canadians played during the Spanish Civil War reveals how divisive this issue has remained in this country. Canadians were divided over this issue during the 1930s. These tensions and divisions over a commemorative plaque, 60 years later, demonstrate that there were still divisions among Canadians. These divisions continued into 21st century. In May 2012, two of the largest circulation newspapers in the country published duelling opinion pieces about the Mac Paps. One in the Toronto Star argued that their role in fighting fascism should be recognized by the Canadian government; the other in the Toronto Sun claimed that as Communists and adventurers they deserve no such recognition. The silence of the federal government continues as the Canadian War Museum makes no mention of the Mac Paps. Recalling past events is not a neutral gesture.