The documents show the interactions between the Canadian government and three minority religious groups -- Mennonites, Hutterites, and Doukhobors. The materials document the issues of communal landholding, special arrangements for the education of their children, exemption from military service, and modification in welfare-state matters. From these materials Janzen identified the underlying patterns in the government's responses.
Mennonites, Hutterites and Doukhobors are three minority protestant groups with origins in 16th Century Europe, that believed in separation from "the world" or general society. All three groups had a connection with Russia (former Soviet Union) and immigrated to Canada in the late 1800s-mid 1900s after securing some special privileges related to religion, education, and military exemptions from the Canadian government. These groups, sometime classified as Christian sects, settled in group settings in Western Canada, were agrarian based and believed in pacifism and non violence. Each group negotiated with the federal and provincial governments in order to practice their religion as they saw fit. The groups had some similar issues such as conscientious objection and alternative service during times of war. Other issues affected the groups differently. These included education, land settlement and use, and freedom from paying some taxes or contributing to the Canada Pension Plan (CPP). The documents included private and government correspondence, reports, articles, essays, and newspaper clippings; and, both primary and secondary documentation on all these issues. Almost all the materials are photocopies.
