Wilbur Greer
DARE Project: Jewish Mayors and Municipal Power
Program(s) of Study: History
Project Supervisor: David Koffman
Professor Koffman’s book intends to paint a robust picture of the hundreds of Jewish mayors that have served and shaped the nation. We believe that the conclusions that can be drawn by focusing on Jewish experiences as mayors will make for fascinating connections and insights about multiculturalism, racism, and power in Canada.
Project Description:
“Jewish Mayors and Municipal Power” is the title of my supervisor Professor David Koffman’s upcoming book, which focuses on the substantial number Jewish Canadians that have served as mayors and municipal politicians from the mid 19th century to the 21st. Coming from a wide variety of vocational, cultural and political backgrounds, these politicians thrived within municipal spheres in numbers far greater than on the provincial or federal levels. Our research asks a series of questions about religion and ethnicity in the exercise of municipal political power, the impact of the urban environment on the tolerance of the electorate, and the extent to which Jewishness informed both the decisions and the legacies of Jewish mayors. Throughout my time on this project, I’ve been tasked with the collection and analysis of news reports, press conferences, interviews and other primary sources on the political and personal lives of Jewish Canadian municipal politicians. It has been my undertaking to draw connections between their diverse political goals, backgrounds and experiences. These threads have posed many interesting questions. Why did so many Jewish pharmacists enter politics? What was it about Winnipeg’s Jewish North End that created so many hard leftists and Communists? How much did a politician’s Jewishness matter to an almost entirely gentile electorate? Working to answer these questions, among many others, has been fulfilling, thought provoking work that I am deeply grateful to have contributed to.The Dean’s Award for Research Excellence (DARE) – Undergraduate enables our students to meaningfully engage in research projects supervised by LA&PS faculty members. Find out more about DARE.