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Mobilizing MercyA History of the Canadian Red Cross |
eBook Available
An engaging history that follows Canada’s leading humanitarian organization through decades of war, peace, and social change.
For more than a century the Canadian Red Cross Society has provided help and comfort to vulnerable people at home and abroad. In the first detailed national history of the organization, Sarah Glassford reveals how the European-born Red Cross movement came to Canada and took root, and why it flourished.
From its origins in battlefield medicine to the creation of Canada’s first nationwide free blood transfusion service during the Cold War, Mobilizing Mercy charts crucial organizational changes, the influence of key leaders, and the impact of social, cultural, political, economic, and international trends over time. Glassford shows that the key to the Red Cross's longevity lies in its ability to reinvent itself by tapping into the concerns and ambitions of diverse groups including militia doctors, government officials, middle-class women, and schoolchildren. Through periods of war and peace, the Canadian Red Cross pioneered new services and filled gaps in government aid to become a ubiquitous agency on the wartime home front, a major domestic public health organization, and a respected provider of international humanitarian aid.
Opening a window onto the shifting relationship between voluntary organizations and the state, Mobilizing Mercy is a compelling portrait of a major humanitarian organization, its people, and its ever-evolving place in Canadian society.
From its origins in battlefield medicine to the creation of Canada’s first nationwide free blood transfusion service during the Cold War, Mobilizing Mercy charts crucial organizational changes, the influence of key leaders, and the impact of social, cultural, political, economic, and international trends over time. Glassford shows that the key to the Red Cross's longevity lies in its ability to reinvent itself by tapping into the concerns and ambitions of diverse groups including militia doctors, government officials, middle-class women, and schoolchildren. Through periods of war and peace, the Canadian Red Cross pioneered new services and filled gaps in government aid to become a ubiquitous agency on the wartime home front, a major domestic public health organization, and a respected provider of international humanitarian aid.
Opening a window onto the shifting relationship between voluntary organizations and the state, Mobilizing Mercy is a compelling portrait of a major humanitarian organization, its people, and its ever-evolving place in Canadian society.
Details
Part of the McGill-Queen’s/AMS Healthcare Studies in the History of Medicine, Health, and Society (number 45 in series)
408 Pages, 6 x 9
30 photos
ISBN 9780773547759
March 2017
Formats: Cloth, eBook
“Dynamic, evocative, and comprehensive, Sarah Glassford’s account will attract the attention of scholars, students, Red Cross members and donors, and readers engaged with the history of war, disasters, transnational solidarities, patriotism, health, women and youth, paid and voluntary work, not-for-profit organizations and the making of the welfare state.” Dominique Marshall, Carleton University
"Documenting nearly one hundred years of history is a challenging and daunting task, but Glassford skillfully navigates the many and varied currents of ninetieth- and twentieth-century Canada in a manner reflective of the events and issues that influenced the development of the CRCS. Glassford's chorological approach is clear and easy to follow [and] Mobilizing Mercy is rich on the recorded history of the Canadian Red Cross Society. Mobilizing Mercy makes a welcomed contribution to Canadian history that will appeal to readers interested in the social and cultural dimensions of Canada's leading humanitarian aid organization." Scientia Canadensis
“Sarah Glassford’s Mobilizing Mercy is a taut, insightful, and incisive look at the history of the Canadian Red Cross Society (CRCS) - later the Canadian Red Cross - from its inception on the battlefield of Batoche in 1885 to 1970. Using a plethora of primary sources, including CRCS minute books, annual reports, newsletters, and, for an outside perspective, House of Commons Debates and Sessional Papers, she takes readers on a tour of CRCS work both within Canada and overseas.” Canadian Military History
"Mobilizing Mercy contributes to the history of war and conflict, deepening our understanding of institutional responses to disaster, and how patriotism may be marshaled in the pursuit of health humanitarianism. It will be especially useful for historians of military medicine, women and medicine, public health, and nursing, and will help enhance our collective appreciation of the voluntary sector and how important the sector is to the history of medicine." Bulletin of the History of Medicine
"Documenting nearly one hundred years of history is a challenging and daunting task, but Glassford skillfully navigates the many and varied currents of ninetieth- and twentieth-century Canada in a manner reflective of the events and issues that influenced the development of the CRCS. Glassford's chorological approach is clear and easy to follow [and] Mobilizing Mercy is rich on the recorded history of the Canadian Red Cross Society. Mobilizing Mercy makes a welcomed contribution to Canadian history that will appeal to readers interested in the social and cultural dimensions of Canada's leading humanitarian aid organization." Scientia Canadensis
“Sarah Glassford’s Mobilizing Mercy is a taut, insightful, and incisive look at the history of the Canadian Red Cross Society (CRCS) - later the Canadian Red Cross - from its inception on the battlefield of Batoche in 1885 to 1970. Using a plethora of primary sources, including CRCS minute books, annual reports, newsletters, and, for an outside perspective, House of Commons Debates and Sessional Papers, she takes readers on a tour of CRCS work both within Canada and overseas.” Canadian Military History
"Mobilizing Mercy contributes to the history of war and conflict, deepening our understanding of institutional responses to disaster, and how patriotism may be marshaled in the pursuit of health humanitarianism. It will be especially useful for historians of military medicine, women and medicine, public health, and nursing, and will help enhance our collective appreciation of the voluntary sector and how important the sector is to the history of medicine." Bulletin of the History of Medicine
Sarah Glassford is a social historian of Canada who earned her PhD at York University.
CONTENTS
Illustrations / ix
Acknowledgments / xiii
Abbreviations / xvii
Introduction / 3
Men, Medicine, and Militia, 1885-1896 / 27
To South Africa and Back, 1896-1914 / 46
A Society Transformed by War, 1914-1918 / 81
The Battlefields of Peace, 1919-1939 / 129
Golden Age or Troubled Times? 1939-1945 / 163
Mid-Century Modern Red Cross, 1946-1970 / 213
Conclusion / 264
Notes / 287
Bibliography / 345
Index / 371
Illustrations / ix
Acknowledgments / xiii
Abbreviations / xvii
Introduction / 3
Men, Medicine, and Militia, 1885-1896 / 27
To South Africa and Back, 1896-1914 / 46
A Society Transformed by War, 1914-1918 / 81
The Battlefields of Peace, 1919-1939 / 129
Golden Age or Troubled Times? 1939-1945 / 163
Mid-Century Modern Red Cross, 1946-1970 / 213
Conclusion / 264
Notes / 287
Bibliography / 345
Index / 371
9780773554863
$140.00 CAD
Cloth
9780773528970
$125.00 CAD
Cloth
