Commemorating June 20, the anniversary of the end of Canada’s WW1 internment of
Ukrainians coast-to-coast, and World Refugee Day

Les Pages Noires Productions and Babushka Theatre present
The return digital performances of

Run Nawrocki Run! Escape from Banff Prison
Written & performed by Norman Nawrocki
Music by Norman & Vivian Nawrocki

Click to see the trailer

Monday, June 20 to Monday, July 4, 2022

A Ukrainian Canadian WW1 story of courage—dream, resist, escape
Benefit screenings for humanitarian aid for Ukraine & Ukrainian refugees

“Oh Canada, land of hope and promise, how you use and deceive us.”– Nestor

Montreal, May 2022 – Acclaimed Montreal playwright/actor/musician Norman Nawrocki blends Canadian history, emigration, racism, wartime hysteria, Ukrainian folkloric medicinal rituals, music and legend together with family memoire into this compelling tale about hope, courage and resistance. Nawrocki wrote, directed and performs in the play, with filmed appearances by his Vancouver-based sister Vivian. The eye-opening Run Nawrocki Run! Escape from Banff Prison runs from June 20-July 4 on Nawrocki’s YouTube channel. Tickets are free, with donations to Fundacja Folkowisko Foundation gratefully appreciated.

The 40-minute multimedia production brings to light the little-known but shamefully true WW1 incarceration and exploitation of 9,000 mostly Ukrainian Canadian immigrants in forced labour camps across Canada. In Run Nawrocki Run! Escape from Banff Prison, Nestor, an unemployed Ukrainian Canadian citizen, is nabbed by the police, imprisoned and forced to do slave labour in a federal concentration camp near Banff Alberta. Despite the brutal, tortuous conditions, he rebels, dreams and conspires to escape. His Baba (grandmother), a folk healer in Ukraine, works her magic to help him. This was Canada’s first coast-to-coast internment operation; June 20 honours the anniversary of its end and is also World Refugee Day. 

Nawrocki wrote Run Nawrocki Run! Escape from Banff Prison because of all the stories told and untold passed down through his family about the discrimination, suffering, humiliation, deprivation and misery that they endured for decades, simply for being Ukrainian. “I did this play to honour my Baba and my Dido; all the generations of my family, known and unknown. I created this piece to inform and educate the public about this terrible injustice in the hope that people think about not only the past, but also the present and future; the situation of immigrants, migrants, refugees and others, and how we can avoid repeating this violation of fundamental human rights,” he said.

"One day we're citizens living free, and then we're enemies and aliens. Overnight, everything changes." -- Nestor

The story is particularly personal for Nawrocki. A fan wrote to him after finding his family name on a list of Canadian civilian internees from WW1. After some research, Nawrocki discovered that three distant family members from both his father’s and mothers’ side were imprisoned in Alberta between 1915 and 1920. Run Nawrocki Run! Escape from Banff Prison pays tribute to one of those relatives who successfully escaped from Castle Mountain in Banff National Park, the most inhumane of the 24 internment camps. “I wanted to talk about his courage, his fortitude and his temerity to think about and execute an escape. I salute him, and sincerely hope I have honoured his life as a person of worth, and dare I say, a heroic figure,” said Nawrocki.

The play is also a joyous call to rebellion. Nestor, prisoner of war #158, is inspired and inspires, and despite all the odds, he never loses hope. He demonstrates what’s possible; how to find the courage within us all to work with others for our collective freedom.

The show was filmed live in Montreal’s historic Gaston-Miron Building, with footage from Rawdon, Quebec, Banff and Vancouver. This is the third in Nawrocki’s trilogy of Ukrainian-Polish-Canadian plays based on his own family history, with Ukrainians, Pelicans & the Secret of Patterson Lake and Eviction? Dog’s Blood!! Nick Zynchuk & Montreal’s Red Plateau, 1933.

Run Nawrocki Run! Escape from Banff Prison is written, performed and directed by Norman Nawrocki with music written and performed by siblings Norman & Vivian Nawrocki; videography by Naomi Silver-Vézina; visuals by Joyce Valbuena; sound by Gregory Anderson Smith; and lighting design by James Douglas.

Norman Nawrocki is an internationally acclaimed Montréal-based author, playwright, actor, violinist, cabaret artist, educator and producer. He has written, staged and toured over 20 theatre and cabaret creations since 1986; his original plays address both historical and contemporary issues of social justice. He has authored 14 books of poetry, short fiction and a novel (with translations in French and Italian), and released over 60 albums of music and spoken word, both solo and with his diverse bands. Pre-pandemic he toured Canada, the US and Europe. He also records and performs with his sister as the East European music duo, The Nawrockis. linktr.ee/normannawrocki

“An important story to tell & to remember.”—David Gray, CBC Calgary Eyeopener

Run Nawrocki Run! Escape from Banff Prison
June 20 (7:30 EDT) to July 4 (midnight EDT)
On Norman Nawrocki’s YouTube Channel,
Tickets: Free
Benefit screenings for humanitarian aid for Ukraine & Ukrainian refugees
Donation (with tax receipt) to Fundacja Folkowisko Foundation gratefully appreciated

Join the conversation: Facebook event www.facebook.com/events/2795498610746716

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If you would like to Interview playwright/actor/musician Norman Nawrocki,
Media Contact: Janis Kirshner, [email protected] 514 287-8912

Run Nawrocki Run! Escape from Banff Prison was made possible in part by a grant from the Endowment Council of the Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund




FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Nov 12, 2021

“Run Nawrocki Run! Escape from Banff Prison”
A Ukrainian Canadian WW1 story of courage, hope & resistance
Norman Nawrocki’s newest play online December 11th to 17th, 2021

Watch acclaimed Montreal playwright/actor/musician Norman Nawrocki and his sister Vivian Nawrocki perform his powerful new play, “Run Nawrocki Run! Escape from Banff Prison,” for seven days only, from Saturday December 11th @ 9am EST until Fri. Dec. 17th, 9pm EST on his YouTube channel. (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKBVz0yppyWBrXvfal4PPsw)

Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/241926741186402

Nawrocki tells the little-known but shameful WW1 story of the incarceration and exploitation of poor, unemployed Ukrainian-Canadian immigrants in one of 24 forced labour camps across the country. Some 8,579 suspected ‘enemy aliens’– mostly Ukrainians and other foreigners – were imprisoned from 1914 to 1920.

Filmed live in Montreal’s historic Gaston-Miron Building, with footage from Rawdon, Quebec and Vancouver, Nawrocki portrays a civilian prisoner of war who recounts a compelling tale of resilience and resistance. Desperate to escape the notorious Castle Mountain prison camp near Banff, the prisoner appeals to his Ukraine grandmother to help him. ‘Baba’ works her magic in his dreams.

Nawrocki blends Canadian history, emigration, racism, war hysteria, Ukrainian folkloric medicinal rituals and legend with family memory in the 40-minute long production.

He wrote, directed, performs in and produced the play, with filmed appearances by his Vancouver sister Vivian. She portrays the character’s ‘Baba.’ The exciting, fast-paced multi-media production features a soundtrack composed, played and recorded by the siblings.

This is the third in his trilogy of Ukrainian-Polish-Canadian plays based on his own family history. Nawrocki’s research revealed that possibly two distant family members were imprisoned in two of the camps. One escaped. The other’s fate is unknown.

The Globe & Mail says Nawrocki’s work is “Subversively powerful.” Reviewers called his lockdown solo play, Ukrainians, Pelicans & the Secret of Patterson Lake (2020) “Marvelous, profound & touching.” Playwright David Fennario called his play, Eviction? Dog’s Blood!! Nick Zynchuk, 1933, Montreal’s Red Plateau, (2020) “A triumph both politically & artistically.” The Winnipeg Free Press said his play, Women Strike! The Winnipeg General Strike 1919 –2019 (2019), “Received thunderous applause from the full house.”

Internationally renowned, Nawrocki has written, staged and toured over 20 theatre and cabaret creations since 1986, authored 14 books of poetry, short fiction and a novel (with translations in French and Italian), and released over 60 albums of music and spoken word, solo and with his diverse bands. Pre-pandemic he toured Canada, the US and Europe. He also records and performs with his sister as the East European music duo, The Nawrockis.

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More information: [email protected]

CFWWIRF National Internment Art Exhibit "PAUSE IN PLIGHT" by Kerri Parnell Opening at KUMF Gallery Toronto September 13 2020

Dear art lovers, you are cordially invited to the opening of Autumn Art Season at the KUMF GALLERY!

Ласкаво запрошуємо шанувальників мистецтва на відкриття осіннього сезону в ҐАЛЕРІЇ КУМФ!
https://kumfgallery.com/pause-in-plight-september-13-october-11-2020/
September 13 - October 11, 2020
The Ukrainian Canadian Art Foundation presents:
National Internment Art Exhibition "PAUSE IN PLIGHT"
by Kerri Parnell (Winnipeg, Manitoba).
Looking forward to seeing you at this event!

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13 вересня - 11 жовтня, 2020р.
Канадсько-Українська Мистецька Фундація представляє:
Національну мистeцьку виставку-вшанування інтернованих
"ПЕРЕРВАНА ОБІЦЯНКА" Керрі Парнел (Вінніпеґ, Манітоба).
Ласкаво запрошуємо!

-------------------------------------------

KUMF GALLERY - ҐАЛЕРІЯ КУМФ:
145 Evans Ave., Suite #101, Etobicoke, ON, M8Z 5X8 416-766-6802
[email protected] www.kumfgallery.com
Gallery hours: Thurs. to Fri. 1-6 pm, Sat. & Sun. 1-5 pm
* We follow all COVID-19 health recommendations and social distancing.

The Stories Were Not Told

Book launch and reading
April 4, 1pm
Nanaimo Art Gallery
150 Commercial St.

In addition to her work as an artist, Sandra Semchuk has recently published The Stories Were Not Told, a book of writing and photographs that brings to light the experiences of enemy aliens during the First World War. Join us in the gallery for a special reading and book signing.

From 1914 to 1920, thousands of men who had immigrated to Canada from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Germany, and the Ottoman Empire were unjustly imprisoned as “enemy aliens,” some with their families. Many communities in Canada where internees originated do not know these stories of Ukrainians, Germans, Bulgarians, Croatians, Czechs, Hungarians, Italians, Jews, Alevi Kurds, Armenians, Ottoman Turks, Poles, Romanians, Russians, Serbians, Slovaks, and Slovenes, amongst others. While most internees were Ukrainians, almost all were civilians.

The Stories Were Not Told presents this largely unrecognized event through photography, cultural theory, and personal testimony, including stories told at last by internees and their descendants. Semchuk describes how lives and society have been shaped by acts of legislated discrimination and how to move toward greater reconciliation, remembrance, and healing. This is necessary reading for anyone seeking to understand the cross-cultural and inter-generational consequences of Canada’s first national internment operations.

The Stories Were Not Told is published by University of Alberta Press. It has been made possible by a grant from the Endowment Council of the Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund.




Turchin Center for the Visual Arts

MARIA: Lesia Maruschak

Exhibition begins: Friday, March 6, 2020
Exhibition Celebration: Friday, March 6, 2020 (6:00pm - 10:00pm)
Exhibition ends: Saturday, August 1, 2020
Venue: Mayer Gallery

WHITE SHADOWS
Men, women and children, branded as "enemy aliens”, interned behind barbed wire under armed guard, their properties lost or confiscated, forced to heavy labor in Canada's heavily forested wilderness. These are the traumatic memories of the ethnocultural communities affected by Canada’s 1914-1920 first national internment operations, of which I am a descendant.

WHITE SHADOWS is an installation from OH CANADA, seen for the first time at the Turchin Center for the Visual Arts. Maruschak created these works to trace the presence of others. These almost life size, blurry and indiscernible photographs are like palimpsests of the early immigrants to Canada and those imprisoned at Canadian World War One internment camps. Maruschak introduces us to them using their faces, eyes, hands and the places they inhabited. They are unknow to us and as we discover them they move to inhabit our memories.

They hang from the atrium ceiling, floating silk panels, like echoes or vibrations. Installed so as to immerse visitors, they fray the boundary between the audience and the work, between the self and the other, between the past and now. They are white, as if white noise, easy to forget, ignore. With movement they enter and disappear from our reality as do memories. Maruschak invites the audience to sit among the panels and forge new relationships with the past and the world around us.

Maruschak is a grant recipient from the First World War Internment Recognition Fund and her work on OH CANADA is sponsored by the Fund.

https://tcva.appstate.edu/exhibitions/2350

THAT NEVER HAPPENED: Canada's First National Internment Operations, will air on documentary Channel on Wednesday, November 20th at 9pm ET/PT.

Leon Trotsky and Canadian POW camps in the First World War
6:00 pm to 8:00 pm, 04 February 2019

Mark Minenko
King’s College London at PhD (Law) candidate

Mark Minenko is a PhD (Law) candidate at King’s College London. His thesis topic is civilian rights during war and conflict, more specifically how emergency powers legislation during the First World War affected civil liberties in the United Kingdom and Canada. He was a Canadian barrister and solicitor for more than 30 years, served in the Canadian military reserves for over 36 years, including service in Bosnia as the assistant to the NATO Political Advisor during the NATO to EU transition period, and worked in government in legislative drafting and policy development. He was also a Member of the Legislative Assembly in Manitoba and he became a footnote in Parliamentary history in 1988 as the first member from the Opposition to be elected as a Speaker or Deputy Speaker in the Commonwealth.



UAlberta Press Announces Book Tour:
Sandra Semchuk, Photographer and Author, Talks of Internment Camps in the First World War

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE / January 21, 2019

Edmonton, AB — University of Alberta Press has published an important new book by Sandra Semchuk, a photographic, text, and video artist, and the winner of a Governor General's Award in Visual and Media Arts (2018). Semchuk will be touring Canada in the coming months to create a discussion around The Stories Were Not Told: Canada’s First World War Internment Camps.

Please click here for the press release for dates of cross-Canada tour.







THAT NEVER HAPPENED - Canadian Screenings

We're excited to announce the theatrical release of THAT NEVER HAPPENED in select cities across Canada over the course of the coming weeks. 

We'd love it if you would share these screenings with your friends and family! The screening information and Facebook events for each of the cities is below as well as the films' social handles so you can post online and let us know you're coming. For those unable to attend the screenings, the film will be available for digital download on November 13th on iTunes and Google Play in Canada. 

UPCOMING SCREENINGS 

Fernie, BC
Sunday, October 21st - Vogue Theatre, 5pm 
*Ryan Boyko will be in attendance for a Q&A 
More informations and tickets can be bought here
www.facebook.com/events/433371680494811/

Calgary, AB
Tuesday, October 23rd - Globe Cinema, 7pm & 9pm 
*Ryan Boyko will be in attendance at both screenings with Q&A's 
Tickets will be available for purchase at the theatre. 
www.facebook.com/events/324368315030225/

Burlington, ON
Saturday, October 27th - Cinestarz, 7pm
*Ryan Boyko will be in attendance for a Q&A
Buy tickets in advance here 
www.facebook.com/events/2053793811351379/

Mississauga, ON
Sunday, October 28th - Cinestarz, 3:15pm  
*Ryan Boyko will be in attendance for a Q&A 
Buy tickets in advance here
www.facebook.com/events/263503244304877/

Ottawa, ON
Thursday, November 8th - Bytowne Cinema, 6:45pm 
*Ryan Boyko will be in attendance for a Q&A 
Tickets will be available for purchase at the theatre. 
www.facebook.com/events/334835420414423/

Saskatoon, SK
Friday, November 9th - Roxy Theatre, 7pm 
Saturday, November 10th - Roxy Theatre, Matinee** 
Sunday, November 11th - Roxy Theatre, Matinee & Evening**  
*Ryan Boyko will be in attendance at the Friday, November 9th screening with a Q&A
**Specific timing TBD, check Roxy Theatre website closer to screening. 
Tickets will be available for purchase at the theatre. 
www.facebook.com/events/270750470221992/

Regina, SK
Saturday, November 10th - Rainbow Cinema, 6:50pm
Sunday, November 11th - Rainbow Cinema, 6:50pm
*Ryan Boyko will be in attendance at the Saturday, November 10th screening with a Q&A
Tickets will be available for purchase at the theatre. 
www.facebook.com/events/524247431335298/

Winnipeg, MB
Sunday, November 11th - Canadian Museum for Human Rights Screening, 1-4pm  
*Ryan Boyko will be in attendance for a Q&A
www.facebook.com/events/288437582006866/

Edmonton, AB
Friday, November 9th - Metro Cinema, 9:30pm
Sunday, November 11th - Metro Cinema, 3pm
Monday, November 12th - Metro Cinema, 7pm 
*Ryan Boyko will be in attendance for the Monday, November 12th screening with a Q&A
Tickets will be available for purchase at the theatre. 
www.facebook.com/events/359126938159869/

All of this information can be found at ArmisticeFilms.com. 

Should you wish to show your support by posting online, here are the social media channels.  Feel free to follow these accounts to stay up-to-date and repost any of the content as well. 

Facebook.com/ArmisticeFilms
Twitter: @ArmisticeFilms
#ThatNeverHappened
Trailer Link - www.vimeo.com/266740574

FERNIE AT WAR 1914-1919
By Wayne Norton
Saturday, October 6, 2018 at 1 PM
Greater Vernon Museum & Archives



Fernie, a small community located in BC’s Kootenay region, emerged from the First World War with multiple controversies that threatened to tear their community apart. Just over a hundred years later, Wayne Norton chronicles the trials and tribulations of the BC city in his book Fernie at War: 1914-1919. The British Columbia Historical Federation awarded Norton with the Community History Award which recognizes local and community history.

The public is invited to Norton’s presentation at the Greater Vernon Museum & Archives (3009 32nd Avenue) for a concise and in-depth presentation on Fernie at War and history pertaining to Vernon on Saturday, October 6, 2018 at 1 PM. Admission is by donation. Space is limited. Pre-registration required (Call 250-542-3142). All are welcome. Books will be available for sale & signing.

Fernie at War explores what it meant to live in Fernie during the confusing and divisive years of the Great War and its aftermath. As a resource-based economy with unusually large and varied immigrant populations, and exceptionally high recruitment levels, Fernie was profoundly affected by conflicting impulses of labour, loyalty and ethnicity. Demands for internment of enemy aliens, resistance to prohibition and moral reform, the consequences of natural and man-made disasters, the unprecedented banning of recruitment, and the western labour revolt were all issues that contributed to a war-time experience for Fernie that was more dramatic and more revealing of underlying tensions than that of any other Canadian community.

About the book, Donna Sacuta, Executive Director of the BC Labour Heritage Centre, says “Fernie at War is a fine example of how labour and popular history can be presented in an accessible and highly readable manner...” Wayne Norton is a writer, publisher and historical consultant living in Victoria, BC. He has written extensively on a variety of topics including music of the First World War, historic women’s ice hockey, prairie settlement, public health, and the local histories of Kamloops and Fernie. He is the author of eight books and has published in British Columbia History, The Globe and Mail, BC Studies and The Vancouver Sun. For more, go to www.caitlin-press.com







Upcoming Presentation:
Commemorating Communities Affected by Canadian Internment Operations of 1914 to 1920
By Dr. Anton Minkov
Tuesday, June 19, 2018 at 7:00pm
Ottawa, Ontario



Dr. Anton Minkov, Endowment Council member of the Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund, will present on Canada’s first national internment operations at the Tommy Douglas Library, 7311 Kingsway, Burnaby, BC on June 10, 2018 at 2:30pm. Hosted by the Bulgarian-Canadian Society of BC.

Dear students, alumni, and community partners,

We have more details to share with you regarding our upcoming Congress in Banff (May 3-6). Scroll down for information about Registration, Flights, Funding, Accommodations, Zabava and other activities.

• Delegate/Observer fees are at $140 - this includes meals, program, and the Saturday night Zabava
• Early bird deadline is Friday April 6th. The Regular rate is $180.
• Final registration is due Monday April 30th.

There are only 70 total spots available for the 2018 Congress.

To guarantee a spot, please:

1. Fill out our Registration Form Here.
2. Purchase your spot. Payment can be processed online 

Flights

SUSK has secured a 10% off flight code with AirCanada: YYE3X3H1 

You may use another flight carrier if preferred. Prices tend to skyrocket within five weeks of flying date, so make arrangements by April 27th for the best rates. Smartphone Applications like 'Hopper' can help determine the best rates and times to book.

Note: Shuttles to the Banff Centre are provided from the Calgary airport. The program begins on Thursday May 3rd (7:00pm) and concludes on Sunday May 6th (11:00am). Commutes to and from Banff can take up to two hours - please allot yourself adequate time between the program and your flights.

Funding

Students flying from Eastern Canada will each be entitled to a $250 bursary to offset flight costs (~$500 if booked within reasonable time).

Students from Western Canada will be provided with $50 each to cover gas costs. We recommend coordinating carpooling with other students.

Further funding may be announced, pending on approval from grant partners.

Accommodations

As part of the conference, delegates and observers are required to stay at the Banff Centre, which charges $185/night ($230 with fees and taxes). We recommend students consider sharing up to 4-people rooms to save costs (there is a nominally higher fee for quad occupancy, but it is overall much more cost-effective).

Students will be assigned to a room following registration, then the Congress Organizer will connect them with the Banff Centre to identify who will be responsible for reserving the room. Rooms have already been blocked off for the Congress.

All students, alumni and community members are welcome to join us at the 2018 SUSK Banquet and Zabava!

The Banquet & Zabava is the concluding evening event at the Annual SUSK Congress. Our event will feature youth leaders from across the country, great food, a stellar band from Edmonton (our friends from Забава у Колі - Zabava u Koli), and an unforgettable evening in the Canadian Rockies.

Program
7:00 Doors open
7:30 Meal
8:30 Keynote Address and Introducing new SUSK Executive
9:00 Zabava featuring Zabava u Koli!

Ticket prices:
Banquet & Zabava - $75
Zabava only - $35
+$5 at the door

NOTE: Congress delegates/observers attending SUSK Congress already have Zabava tickets included. 

[Includes midnight snack]

Pre-Congress

(Optional)
 
Members and friends of SUSK are organizing a 3 day excursion before SUSK Congress! There are limited spots available. “students will stay at accommodations in Canmore to go skiing, hiking, hot springs, and other local activities in the area before the formal Congress program (evening Thursday May 3).
 
RSVP Here
Limited spots available!
 
Costs
Accommodations: $50/night/person (for up to 3 nights)
Sunshine Village lift tickets: $93/day – however likely to be lower with group rates
Food: Costs to be covered by individuals. Some group meals may be planned for Pre-Congress Activities.

If you have any questions, please contact Pre-Congress Organizer Raya Dzulynsky at [email protected].

Vernon Internment Camp Talk & Slide Show

During World War I, Vernon came to the attention of leading politicians in Ottawa, Washington, London, Berlin, and even Vienna. Why? Because of the men, women, and children imprisoned at an internment camp in the town’s north end – subjects of the German and Austro-Hungarian empires, transformed into “enemy aliens” by the outbreak of war. Recent research by members of the Vernon and District Family History Society has brought to light a vast amount of information about the lives of these prisoners and the men who guarded them.

In a half-hour talk and slideshow Don McNair offers some of the highlights of these findings. He also invites the general public to find out if their families, too, have a connection with the internment camp.

A new, richly-illustrated booklet about the camp will be on sale following the talk.

The presentation will take place at the Greater Vernon Museum & Archives Saturday March 3rd from 1:00pm – 1:30pm. Admission for this event is by donation.  As space is limited, pre-registration is required. To pre-register or for more information please call 250-542-3142, visit www.vernonmusuem.ca or find us on Facebook. 
 
This research was made possible by a grant from the Endowment Council of the Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund.

MEDIA RELEASE – January 23, 2018

Award-winning internment documentary screens February 27th at The Vernon Towne Cinema

VERNON, BRITISH COLUMBIA  – The multi-award-winning documentary, That Never Happened: Canada’s First National Internment Operations, will have its Vernon premiere at the Vernon Towne Cinema on Tuesday, February 27, 2018.

The documentary, produced by Armistice Films Inc., recounts the forced internment of thousands of Ukrainians and other Europeans from1914 to1920. The Vernon internment camp was one of the largest and longest opened, one of only two that held women and children. Local residents are featured in this documentary including, Andrea Malysh, Lawrna Myers, Charolette Hanaghan and Michele Loughery.

The Vernon Premiere, a presentation of the Vernon & District Family History Society, reveals how public records were destroyed in 1954. Three decades later, researchers began the task of stitching together the story of this dark chapter in Canadian history.

That Never Happenedhas met with critical acclaim at film festivals across North America. It has garnered 1 nomination and 6 Awards: 4 Awards in the Best Documentary category and THE PEOPLE'S CHOICE AWARD at the Bay Street Film Festival.

The Vernon Premiere is being presented by the Vernon & District Family History Society. There will be a Q & A opportunity after the film with Producer/Director, Ryan Boyko followed by a VIP Wine and Cheese Reception. (All included in the ticket price.)

Tickets to the screening of That Never Happened will sell out.
Where to buy tickets: http://www.ticketseller.ca/1500

Doors open at 6:30pm        Screening at 7:15pm.

To view the trailer, please visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDZ4HnX--hg
Twitter: @ArmisticeFilms
www.Facebook.com/ArmisticeFilms      www.armisticefilms.com      www.internmentcanada.ca

For more information contact:

Kind regards,
Program Manager
Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund
202 – 952 Main Street
Winnipeg, Manitoba R2W 3P4
Toll Free: 1-866-524-5314
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.internmentcanada.ca

Follow us on Facebook or Twitter: @InternmentCda




That Never Happened: Canada's First National Internment Operations
Saskatoon Premiere
Roxy Theatre
Winner of 6 International Awards

"We believe this is some of the best and most timely work that has been made this year. This is some of the best Directing we have seen, and it is Ryan Boyko's feature directorial debut...."
~Tracey Adlai, Director, Valley Film Festival Los Angeles

Official Press Release

TUESDAY January 9th
Doors Open at 6:00 pm
Screening at 6:30 pm
Question and Answer to follow

This event will sell out. Get your tickets today.

THIS PROJECT WAS FUNDED BY A GRANT FROM THE ENDOWMENT COUNCIL OF THE CANADIAN FIRST WORLD WAR INTERNMENT RECOGNITION FUND

Sponsored by the University of Saskatchewan Ukrainian Students' Association & The Ukrainian Canadian Professional and Business Association.

Please help us spread the word amongst your networks as we go forward and take this film across Canada

Click here for TICKETS

Get your tickets in advance.

THAT NEVER HAPPENED reveals the story of Canada's first national internment operations between 1914 - 1920, when over 88,000 people were forced to register and more than 8,500 were wrongfully imprisoned in internment camps across Canada, not for anything they had done but because of where they came from. In 1954, the public records were destroyed and in the 1980s a few brave men and women began working to reclaim this chapter in history and ensure future generations would know about it.

For Tickets Click or call: 
Adrian 306-220-8967 or Nykola 306-514-3143

You are invited to the Toronto Premier of
That Never Happened: Canada's First National Internment Operations
by Ryan Boyko

That Never Happened reveals the story of Canada’s first national internment operations between 1914–1920, when over 88,000 people were forced to register and more than 8,500 were wrongfully imprisoned in camps across Canada, not for anything they had done but because of where they came from. In 1954 the public records were destroyed, and in the 1980s a few brave men and women began working to reclaim this chapter in history and ensure future generations would know about it. The Toronto premiere will be followed by a Q&A with the director and team behind the film.

Tuesday, December 12 2017 at Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema, Toronto, ON

6:30 PM: Doors Open 
7:15 PM: Screening

For more information, please email [email protected].

http://boxoffice.hotdocs.ca/WebSales/pages/info.aspx?evtinfo=68830~fff311b7-cdad-4e14-9ae4-a9905e1b9cb0&epguid=a1a41036-cbe1-4f35-bc34-1ed13d4bd525&utm_source=Armistice+Films+Contact+List&utm_campaign=63b192297a-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2017_11_13&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_db50dc92d6-63b192297a-

YOU ARE INVITED:
Rocky Mountain Premiere of
That Never Happened Canada's First National Internment Operations

Friday, November 17, 2017 from 6:15 PM - 10:00 PM | Buy Tickets Now

You're Invited to experience Banff like you've never experienced it before at the Rocky Mountain Premiere & Reception for "That Never Happened".

On the site of the former internment Camp at Cave and Basin. Between 1914 and 1920 over 8500 people were wrongfully imprisoned in Canada. Many were imprisoned in this location. The Banff Cave and Basin museum is featured in the documentary and will be both a spectacularly beautiful and eerie setting for the multi-award winning Documentary.

The Rocky Mountain Premiere will be an intimate, star-studded and VIP event hosted by Armistice Films Inc. and The Canadian First World War Internment Operation Recognition Fund, with Dignitaries in attendance.

Meet the Director Ryan Boyko, Producer Diana Cofini and key Protagonists of the film, which has taken home critical acclaim as well as People's Choice awards from across North America!

This will be a very special and unique evening with the Screening followed by a Q&A and an elegant wine and cheese reception. Spaces are limited.

6:15 pm	Doors Open
7:00 pm	Welcome & Screening
8:20 pm	Talk Back with Director Ryan Boyko, Producer Diana Cofini & Protagonist Andrew Hladyshevsky
8:40 pm	Reception of Wine and Cheese Begins (museum open at this time)
10:00 pm	Bus departure (buses to be confirmed based upon requests)

Calgary pick up location CYM Hall: 409 9 Ave NE, Calgary, AB T2E 0V9

Cave and Basin National Historic Site
311 Cave Avenue (Map)
Banff, AB T0L 0C0

Buy Tickets Now

BOOK LAUNCH OF NO FREE MAN: CANADA, THE GREAT WAR, AND THE ENEMY ALIEN EXPERIENCE BY DR. BOHDAN S. KORDAN

The book launch of Bohdan Kordan’s No Free Man: Canada, the Great War, and the Enemy Alien Experience will take place at the Ukrainian Federation Hall, 405 Ave, Fairmount O, Montreal, QC on Thursday, March 23rd at 7:00 pm. The launch is part of a national speaking tour that will include presentations in Toronto, Montreal, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Calgary, Victoria, and Ottawa. 

Approximately 8,000 Canadian civilians were imprisoned during the First World War because of their ethnic ties to German, Austria-Hungary, and other enemy nations. Although not as well-known as the later internment of Japanese Canadians during the Second World War, these incarcerations played a crucial role in shaping debates about Canadian citizenship, diversity, and loyalty. Tracing the evolution and consequences of Canadian government policy towards immigrants of enemy nationality, No Free Man is a nuanced work that acknowledges both the challenges faced by the Government of Canada as well as the experiences of internees and their families.

Bohdan Kordan gives particular attention to the ways in which the political and legal status of enemy subjects configured the policy and practice of internment and how this process – magnified by the challenges of the war – affected the broader concerns of public order and national security. Placing the issue of internment within the wider context of community and belonging, Kordan further delves into the ways in which wartime turbulence and anxieties moulded public attitudes towards the treatment of enemy aliens. He concludes that Canada’s leadership failed to protect immigrants of enemy origin during a period of intense suspicion, conflict, and crisis. Framed by questions about government rights, responsibilities, and obligations, and based on extensive archival research, No Free Man provides a systematic and thoughtful account of Canadian government policy towards enemy aliens during the First World War.

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This project was funded by a grant from the Endowment Council
of the Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund.

About CFWWIRF
The Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund (CFWWIRF) was established to support projects that commemorate and recognize the experiences of all of the ethno-cultural communities affected by Canada’s first national internment operations of 1914 to 1920.

For more information on the Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund contact the Program Manager,, toll free at 1-866-524-5314.

BOOK LAUNCH OF NO FREE MAN: CANADA, THE GREAT WAR, AND THE ENEMY ALIEN EXPERIENCE BY DR. BOHDAN S. KORDAN The book launch of Bohdan Kordan’s No Free Man: Canada, the Great War, and the Enemy Alien Experience will take place at THE CANADIAN MUSEUM FOR HUMAN RIGHTS, 85 ISRAEL ASPER WAY, Winnipeg, MB on Thursday, February 23rd,  7:00pm. The launch is part of a national speaking tour that will include presentations in Toronto, Montreal, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Victoria, and Ottawa.  Approximately 8,000 Canadian civilians were imprisoned during the First World War because of their ethnic ties to German, Austria-Hungary, and other enemy nations. Although not as well-known as the later internment of Japanese Canadians during the Second World War, these incarcerations played a crucial role in shaping debates about Canadian citizenship, diversity, and loyalty. Tracing the evolution and consequences of Canadian government policy towards immigrants of enemy nationality, No Free Man is a nuanced work that acknowledges both the challenges faced by the Government of Canada as well as the experiences of internees and their families. Bohdan Kordan gives particular attention to the ways in which the political and legal status of enemy subjects configured the policy and practice of internment and how this process – magnified by the challenges of the war – affected the broader concerns of public order and national security. Placing the issue of internment within the wider context of community and belonging, Kordan further delves into the ways in which wartime turbulence and anxieties moulded public attitudes towards the treatment of enemy aliens. He concludes that Canada’s leadership failed to protect immigrants of enemy origin during a period of intense suspicion, conflict, and crisis. Framed by questions about government rights, responsibilities, and obligations, and based on extensive archival research, No Free Man provides a systematic and thoughtful account of Canadian government policy towards enemy aliens during the First World War. This project was funded by a grant from the Endowment Council of the Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund.
June 25, 2016 at 11:00am Monashee Mountain Plaque Unveiling
November 20, 7:00pm Laurier House National Historic Site Unveiling of Bust of Sir Wilfrid Laurier in Honor for his Defense of Civil Liberties in Wartime Click here to for full details (PDF).
Saturday October 24, 2015 Symposium on WW I Internment and Official Unveiling of Statue
For Immediate Release – December 16, 2014 STAMPS COMMEMORATING 100th ANNIVERSARY OF CANADA'S FIRST INTERNMENT OPERATIONS NOW AVAILABLE
Call for Proposals – Civilian Internment in Canada: Histories and Legacies Winnipeg, June 17-19, 2015 Over the past four decades, the topic of wartime civilian internment in Canada has received considerable attention from scholars, activists, former internees, their descendants, and a host of others concerned with raising awareness and, in many instances, seeking redress. The result has been, among other outcomes, a dynamic body of information – both scholarly and popular. Click here to read the full details (PDF).
Remarks of Prof. Bohdan Kordan, Prairie Centre for the Study of Ukrainian Heritage, St. Thomas More College, University of Saskatchewan at the official unveiling of the Eaton Internment Memorial Plaque, Hawker, Saskatchewan, 28 October 2014, 11:00 am. Click here to download the entire address (PDF).
Please find below information on the upcoming internment symposium to be held on 17-18 October 2014 in Banff, Alberta.
Announcing CTO – The One Hundred Plaques Across Canada Initiative To mark the 100th anniversary of Canada's first national internment operations of 1914-1920, the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Foundation (www.ucclf.ca) will be unveiling 100 plaques on Friday, 22 August 2014, the 100th anniversary of the War Measures Act. This initiative, the CTO (“One Hundred”) project, enjoys the financial support of the UCCLF and of the Endowment Council of the Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund (www.internmentcanada.ca). All 100 plaques will be unveiled at 11 am (local time) in Ukrainian, Croatian, Serbian, German, and Hungarian churches and cultural centres, as well as in local and regional museums and other public venues, creating a "wave" of unveilings, moving from east to west, from coast to coast. Dr Lubomyr Luciuk, the CTO project leader, said: "Beginning in 1994, the Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association (www.uccla.ca) began placing historical markers to recall the internment operations, hoping to eventually have a plaque at each of the 24 camp sites. We started with Kingston's own Fort Henry, the location of Canada’s first permanent internment camp. Over the course of some 20 years our volunteers and supporters have made sure each internment camp location has been marked. The CTO project builds on UCCLA's foundational work. These plaques will hallow the memory of all of the victims of the internment operations and help educate our fellow Canadians about a little-known episode in Canada’s national history. That fulfils the mandate of the Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund and of the UCCLF. I want to add that this is the first time in Canadian history that any community has attempted to unveil 100 historical plaques from coast to coast at the same (local) time. This couldn’t happen without the enthusiastic support of hundreds of volunteers in 100 communities across the country, from Amherst, Nova Scotia to Nanaimo, British Columbia, and Grand Prairie, Alberta to Val D’Or, Quebec to name but a few. We’re also very grateful to our Patriarch, the two Metropolitans, the national executive of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, the representatives of the other affected communities and many of our internee descendants, for their help. We’re calling on people to set aside 11 am (local time) on Friday, 22 August 2014 so that they can join us in witnessing a plaque unveiling in their own community or region. Be there to remember, and to learn."
"CTO" – RECALLING CANADA'S FIRST NATIONAL INTERNMENT OPERATIONS, 1914-1920 ONE HUNDRED PLAQUES RECIPIENT LIST (as of 1 July 2014) Click here to view the list of plaque sites.
Official Opening of Parks Canada's internment exhibit: ENEMY ALIENS, PRISONERS OF WAR: CANADA'S FIRST WORLD WAR INTERNMENT OPERATIONS 1914 - 1920
Join author Barbara Sapergia for the Launch of Blood and Salt in Winnipeg at McNally Robinson Booksellers, at 7:30 pm on Thursday, May 9, 2013 in the Travel Alcove.
Marsha Skrypuch, author and internee descendant will be giving a reading on internment at the Banff Public Library on June 19th at 7:30pm. This event coincides with the official opening of the Parks Canada Internment Pavilion on 20 June 2013 at 2:00pm at the Cave & Basin National Historic Site, Banff National Park, Banff, Alberta. For further information, click here (PDF) or contact 1-866-524-5314.
The Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund is now on Facebook.