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Destination Vancouver: Draft dodgers head north

No one expected the Vietnam War to play out as it did. With thousands of young men fighting to the death overseas, another group of American sons fled their homeland and journeyed north to Canada. As the battle raged on and the antiwar movement divided the United States, draft dodgers and deserters struggled to forge new lives for themselves. Seeking sanctuary and the opportunity to make a difference, they changed their adopted country unquestionably. (Note: Some clips contain explicit language.)

Border guards are bending over backwards to be lenient, the Committee to Aid American Objectors has answers for every question, and occasionally you can seal your citizenship with a new bride -- Vancouver is at the center of draft dodger immigration. From sympathetic border guards to marriages of convenience, this CBC Radio report uncovers the extensive formal and informal network to help draft dodgers and deserters in British Columbia.
. Draft dodgers in Vancouver settled in Tofino, Kitsilano and Vancouver. British Columbia politician Corky Evans moved to BC during the 1960s and organized the first housing co-op in the Kootenays. He has since run unsuccessfully for the NDP leadership and acted as minister of agriculture for the province.
Medium: Radio
Program: Rule and Revolution
Broadcast Date: Dec. 16, 1970
Host: Barbara Frum
Reporter: Fred Cawsey
Duration: 26:29

Last updated: January 24, 2012

Page consulted on March 25, 2013

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