Human Rights A Day

Supreme Court rules against Premier Duplessis for punishing Jehovah’s Witness. Years ago, many people regarded the Witnesses of Jehovah as a radical Christian sect, especially in Quebec, where they were very critical of the Roman Catholic church. During World War II, Quebecors banned Jehovah’s Witnesses as an organization and imprisoned Witnesses practicing their beliefs. After the war, Quebec Premier Maurice Duplessis did everything in his power to put a stop to this group. In 1945, provincial authorities carried out large scale arrests of young Witness men and women as they broke local by-laws by handing out their magazines. Montreal restaurateur Frank Roncarelli gave legal assurances for each arrest and by November 12, 1946, he had posted about 380 sureties. Later that month, Premier Duplessis, who also served as Quebec’s attorney general, ordered the head of the Quebec Liquor Commission, Edouard Archambault, to revoke the liquor license at Roncarelli’s restaurant Quaff. This was despite the fact that Ronc