Class Conflict and Civil Liberties: The Origins and Activities of the Canadian Labour Defense League, 1925-1940

This paper reconstructs the origins and activities of the Canadian Labour Defense League (CLDL) and assesses its role during a turbulent period in Canadian history. Led by Albert Edward Smith, a former Methodist minister, the CLDL rose to prominence during the worst years of the depression, promoting communist policies, agitating on behalf of the Communist Party of Canada and defending before the courts over 6,000 individuals who had ventured astray of the law because of their militant activities. The CLDL was especially effective after the arrest and conviction of Tim Buck and seven other communist leaders in 1931 under the controversial Section 98 of the Criminal Code. Skillfully intertwining communism with the defense of civil liberties in Canada, the CLDL launched a series of protest campaigns which not only brought to the organization a substantial following, but also had a significant impact on the political authorities in the nation.