Social Discredit: Anti-Semitism, Social Credit, and the Jewish Response

By Janine Stingel

By examining Social Credit's anti-Semitic propaganda and the reaction of the Canadian Jewish Congress, Stingel details their mutual antagonism and explores why Congress was unable to stop Social Credit's blatant defamation. She argues that Congress's ineffective response was part of a broader problem in which passivity and a belief in "quiet diplomacy" undermined many of its efforts to combat intolerance. Stingel shows that both Social Credit and Congress changed considerably in the post-war period, as Social Credit abandoned its anti-Semitic trappings and Congress gradually adopted an assertive and pugnacious public relations philosophy that made it a champion of human rights in Canada. Social Discredit offers a fresh perspective on both the Social Credit movement and the Canadian Jewish Congress, substantively revising Social Credit historiography and providing a valuable addition to Canadian Jewish studies.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0773520104
• ISBN13: 9780773520103
• Release Date: February 2000
• Publisher: McGill-Queen's University Press
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 1.33 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.4" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

An excellent and welcome contribution to Judaic studies.

In Social Discredit: Anti-semitism, Social Credit, And The Jewish Response, Canadian social researcher Janine Stingel aptly surveys the virulent, belligerent, anti-Jewish campaign undertaken in Canada by Social Credit before, during and after the years of World War II. While most Canadians acknowledged the perils of race hatred in the wake of the Holocaust, Social Credit continued to intensified its post-war anti-Semitic campaign. By examining Social Credit's anti-Semitic propaganda, and the reaction of the Canadian Jewish Congress, Stingel details their mutual antagonism and explores why the CJC was unable to put a stop Social Credit's blatant defamation. When Social Credit eventually and gradually abandoned its anti-Semitic trappings, the CJC began to adopt the assertive, activist public relations philosophy that was to make it an effective champion of human rights in Canada. Social Discredit is highly recommended reading for students of 20th Century Canadian political and social history, and Judaic studies.