Between 1904 and 1907, around 5,000 men immigrated from South Asian countries to Canada. These men worked low-wage jobs such as building the railway, farm work, or sawmill work. Labour was often short-term, offered to immigrants as they were willing to take up low-wage opportunities. However, many faced unemployment or could not secure a job with a stable income.
In the fall of 1908, the Canadian government devised a scheme called the British Honduras Scheme or the Hindu Deportation Scheme, ostensibly to assuage South Asian immigrants who were suffering in British Columbia. The scheme postulated that South Asians had more opportunities to gain financial stability in British Honduras. The scheme postulated that “Hindoo coolies” should be deported “to a more congenial climate,” as it would be “beneficial not just for whites but also for South Asians.” However, South Asians resisted the deportation.
South Asians were portrayed as “hopeless,” “hapless,” and “inferior” people who were not capable of surviving in the Northern Hemisphere. Clearly, they were not wanted; the scheme was aimed at white dominance. Perhaps that was the reason why South Asians were only confined to cheap manual labour; many believed that they did not deserve to earn equal, normal wages.
White Canadians were anxious that Asian immigrants would take away their jobs. South Asians were employed in many major sectors, specifically the Canadian Pacific Railway, which made huge profits by employing immigrants willing to work for low wages. South Asians were viewed as the “weaker race,” and because such companies were using them, they were seen as a burden on Canada.
Newspapers urged companies to stop employing “Hindoos” in the businesses owned by white men, and this came to be known as the “Hindoo Problem.” Immigration policies were modified to please the White Canadians. They restricted the immigration of South Asians into the province. Continuous Journey Legislation prohibited immigrants from coming to Canada not from their country of birth but through a constant journey, specifically to prevent “this class of people coming to Canada.”
Anxiety persisted as the people already in the country were believed to be taking control of the territories that belonged to the white population. Hence, the government decided to deal with South Asians who had already arrived by transporting them to British Honduras, now Belize, where they could work at sugarcane plantations or railway construction because such work suited “their class.”
More arguments, as presented in the newspaper, suggested that South Asians had no idea of the harshness of winter when they arrived. As indicated by the theories of scientific racism, they were biologically unsuitable for the weather of Canada. While the papers tried to make the case that Honduras’ scheme was favourable for South Asian success, they clearly expressed that they were incapable of making a successful living in British Columbia.
Two men, Sham Singh and Hagar Singh, who were sent to British Honduras, had reportedly found the place very favourable. However, when they returned, they accused their interpreter of bribing them to give such reviews. The newspaper reports did not match the experience. The two men contacted Teja Singh to fight their case and prevent deportation.
Teja Singh, described by the press as a “Hindoo Leader,” was born in West Punjab. He was deeply religious and was known as Sant (Saint) Teja Singh. He was in New York when they reached out. When he came to Canada, he was known as an “agitator” against the British. He led the opposition against the British Honduras Scheme in 1908.
Teja believed Sham and Hagar’s claim of bribery. He began by studying the government orders. He took it to the press; Vancouver Daily Province wrote that three thousand dollars in US currency were allegedly offered to bribe for a positive report of British Honduras. He also collected data from the employers of working South Asians and got them to testify in writing that Indians worked 50 per cent harder than native Canadians. Teja also stated that the claim that immigrants were not adapting to the climate was false.
“[T]his talk of the numbers unemployed is unfounded. Most of my people are at work and doing well. They are fast adapting themselves to local conditions,” Teja clapped back at the claims the government made about South Asians not finding success in British Columbia.
The community had rounded up their resources to build a temple with $7,000. This was an indicator that the immigrants were here to stay and, contrary to popular belief, were doing well.
If some South Asians were unemployed in the province, Teja declared that other members of the community were responsible for them and took care of them; they were not proving to be a burden on British Columbia. Teja also bought 250 acres of land near North Vancouver for unemployed South Asians.
Newspapers began publishing articles in Teja’s favour. They wrote that Teja had dealt a “death blow to the British Honduras Scheme.” All the arguments presented by the government justifying the deportation of South Asians to British Honduras were countered by Teja. In the end, the scheme failed as the Canadian government was left with nothing to reason why the South Asians must be removed.
Teja came to be perceived as someone who sowed the seeds of revolt in Canada’s Indian community against Britain. When he returned to the United States to complete his master’s degree at Columbia University, he realised that the British had reached out and asked not to grant him admission. The University turned Teja away on the grounds that he lost his right to study there as he led a movement against the Canadian government.
However, Harvard University took Teja in as the British had not contacted the University. Teja finally finished his Master’s degree at Havard in 1913. Teja is known to be a great leader who contributed to uplift the Sikh communities in the West and is associated with building many Gurdwaras across England, Canada, and the United States. While his fight against the Canadian government was a clever victory, it was yet just one of many fights of South Asians against racism.
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