Pierre Trudeau's Darkest Hour

Fifty years ago, on October 16, 1970, Pierre Elliott Trudeau?s government took on the powers of a ?dictatorship? by imposing War Measures on Quebec. That is not a ?separatist? rant, but the thoughts of his long-time friend and renowned historian Ramsay Cook. Other eminent Canadians share Cook?s assessment.

Supporters of the War Measures say they were necessary to capture the FLQ terrorists. Yet Reg Whittaker insists that the RCMP never asked for the War Measures and would have opposed them had they been asked.

Historian Jack Granatstein, who spoke critically of Trudeau at a York University ?Rally for Canada? in 1970, wrote about the ?visceral hatred? and the ?anti-Quebec/pro-government response.? With the mood ?hawkish on Quebec,? Robert Fulford observed that the ?people were discovered to be hysterical? while the press was ?sycophantic.? And Margaret Atwood said in 1980, ?If you think that Canada is really a democratic country where the freedom of expression reigns, you must remember the War Measures Act.?

With Justin Trudeau in his father?s seat, the government will not revisit that ?massive injustice,? as Eric Kierans, Trudeau Sr.?s own Cabinet minister, described it. Yet 12,500 troops occupied Quebec?7,500 in Montreal. Police arrested more than 500 people, detained them incommunicado without charges, without bail, and without the right to a lawyer. They entered and searched more than 10,000 homes without warrants. Nobody has ever apologized.

Time has come to reexamine Pierre Trudeau and his War Measures. This rigorously researched anthology is an essential starting point, presenting the writings or comments of such diverse voices as Margaret Atwood, Robert Fulford, Jack Granatstein, Desmond Morton, Tommy Douglas, Hugh Segal and more.