Sep 07, 2018
By Jane Brown
It is part of Canada’s dark history – turning away a ship of German Jews seeking asylum in 1939.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has told a national rabbi group he will make an apology for this disgraceful act in November.
Trudeau has been addressing the infamous move in recent months during some speaking engagements, but this is the first we’re hearing of a time associated with an apology.
The M.S. St. Louis was carrying 907 Jews fleeing Nazi persecution.
It was turned away from both Cuba and the U.S. before a group of Canadians tried to convince then-prime minister Mackenzie King to let it dock in Halifax.
But King was unable to convince his immigration officials to allow them into Canada, forcing the ship to return to Europe.
Many found safe haven in Holland and the UK, but 254 eventually died in the Holocaust after returning to Germany.
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