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On This Day in Canada’s Political History: Passing of CCF legend J.S. Woodsworth

  • Arthur Milnes

  • March 21, 2021

It was on this date in 1942 that Parliamentarian and social activist J.S. Woodsworth passed into history.  This is an important anniversary, in particular, for all my NDP friends to recall as Mr. Woodsworth was one of the founders of the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation. The CCF later became the NDP. J.S. Woodsworth served as an MP for more than 20 years and earned the respect of all members of the House of Commons, regardless of party. Prime Minister Mackenzie King once famously described Mr. Woodsworth the following way:

“There are few men in this Parliament for whom I have greater respect than the leader of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation. I admire him in my heart, because time and again he has had the courage to say what lays on his conscience, regardless of what the world might think of him. A man of that calibre is an ornament to any Parliament."

Most significantly, Prime Minister King’s comments came after J.S. Woodsworth announced his intention to vote against Canada’s entry into World War II, the only MP to do so. Having been proudly born and raised in Scarborough, Ontario, I am pleased to note that I attended J.S. Woodsworth Senior Public School (now Tredway-Woodsworth Public School) back in the day. caption id="attachment_545411" align="aligncenter" width="220" Former CCF Leader J.S. Woodsworth/caption Arthur Milnes is an accomplished public historian and award-winning journalist.  He was research assistant on The Rt. Hon. Brian Mulroney’s best-selling Memoirs and also served as a speechwriter to then-Prime Minister Stephen Harper and as a Fellow of the Queen’s Centre for the Study of Democracy under the leadership of Tom Axworthy.  A resident of Kingston, Ontario, Milnes serves as the in-house historian at the 175 year-old Frontenac Club Hotel.

Arthur Milnes is an accomplished public historian and award-winning journalist. He was research assistant on The Rt. Hon. Brian Mulroney’s best-selling Memoirs and also served as a speechwriter to then-Prime Minister Stephen Harper and as a Fellow of the Queen’s Centre for the Study of Democracy under the leadership of Tom Axworthy. A resident of Kingston, Ontario, Milnes serves as the in-house historian at the 175 year-old Frontenac Club Hotel.