Tommy Clement Douglas

A close up of Tommy Douglas (http://www.dcfmedia.ca/images/tcd_portrait2_high.jpg)

Say you had a bone disease in your leg and you could not pay for the surgery. This happened to Tommy Douglas and his leg was saved only because a doctor thought it would be a good lesson to show his students. Tommy thought that other people should not have to be “lucky” to have diseases to be saved. He wanted to make Medicare free. Tommy Douglas was on a journey to gain health care for Canada.

A picture of Tommy Douglas posing

Tommy Douglas was born in Falkirk, Scotland in 1910. He moved to Winnipeg in 1919. Tommy was a Baptist preacher in Weyburn when the depression hit Saskatchewan. The poverty and misery that surrounded him made him decide to join politics. He participated in the founding of CCF (Convention of the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation) in 1993 and was elected to Parliament in 1935. He returned to lead the CCF in Saskatchewan. With Tommy in charge the party won five consecutive mandates.

A picture of Tommy Douglas giving a speech (http://www.dcfmedia.ca/images/tcd_convention_high.jpg)

Tommy Douglas is a hero in my eyes because he was the leader of the first socialist government in all of North America. He also invented Health care in Canada. Here are some Medicare services he brought to Canada. Free Health Care for pensioners. Free cancer treatment for those in need. As well as Canada’s first universal and compulsory hospital insurance program. He also created some educational benefits in Canada such as bigger school rooms, better wages for teachers, and an increase in education budget. This and many other reasons conclude to why Tommy Douglas is my hero.

A pictue of Tommy Douglas when he was younger

In 1962, Tommy Douglas received an honorary Doctor of Laws from the University of Saskatchewan. He resigned as NDP leader in 1971 but remained in the House of Commons. He retired from politics in 1979 and served on the board of directors of Husky Oil, an oil and gas exploration company. In 1981 Douglas was made a companion of the Order of Canada. In June 1984 Tommy was injured when he was struck by a bus but he quickly recovered. At this point his memory was slowing down and he stopped giving public speeches, although he remained active in the Douglas-Coldwell Foundation. Tommy Douglas died of cancer on February 24, 1986 at the age of 81 in Ottawa.

Another speech

So next time you have an accident know that every time you have health care that there was a great hero, Tommy Douglas. Without him we would pay all of our medical bills with no assistance for the pay. Tommy Douglas was a remarkable man who was premier, minister of health, in the House of Commons, and created health care.