Victoria in the Time of Exclusion

The Victoria in the Time of Exclusion exhibit examines a period in Canadian history when Chinese immigrants and Chinese Canadians were subjected to systemic discrimination through federal immigration law. At the centre of the exhibit is the Chinese Immigration Act of 1923, commonly known as the Exclusion Act, which transformed immigration control into a daily reality for Chinese communities. As a major port of entry and home to one of the oldest Chinatowns in Canada, Victoria was a place where the effects of exclusion were enforced and deeply felt.

The Exclusion Act came into force on July 1, 1923, and almost entirely halted Chinese immigration to Canada for nearly twenty-five years. With only narrow exceptions for diplomats, students, and merchants, the law prevented family reunification and forced many Chinese Canadians to live apart from their loved ones for decades. Those already in Canada were required to register with the federal government and carry certificates of identity—documents that monitored movement rather than granting rights or belonging. The Act remained in place until 1947, leaving lasting social and emotional impacts.

The certificates displayed in the exhibit tell deeply personal stories of restriction, separation, and endurance. Issued under Canada’s Chinese Immigration Act and related regulations, these documents were required for Chinese residents to remain in, leave, or re-enter the country. What appear as administrative records were, in reality, conditions of daily life that shaped identity and regulated movement.

The wall of certificates makes the human cost of exclusion visible: each record includes a photograph, a name, and an identification number. For families, the certificates often marked years of waiting and uncertainty. Children grew up apart from parents, relationships were sustained across great distances, and reunification remained uncertain until the repeal of the Exclusion Act in 1947.

Printed across the exhibit is a stark reminder: “This certificate does not establish legal status in Canada.” Carried out of necessity rather than choice, these documents became symbols of both restriction and perseverance.