Dealing with homosexuals in the public service was a familiar problem for Western governments during the 1950s and early 1960s. A criminal offense in most countries, homosexuals were often punished with imprisonment and/or mandatory psychiatric treatment, that made closeted homosexuals especially vulnerable to blackmail or recruitment by hostile governments. At least, that was the argument used to justify the security campaigns rooting out any homosexuals (real or suspected) in sensitive positions. Although the anti-homosexual crusades in the United States and Great Britain are well-documented, that the Canadian government did the same was largely shrouded in secrecy for decades. It was only during the 1990s that the Canadian Press used the Freedom of Information Act to obtain many previously classified documents outlining how thoroughly Canadian security forces managed to destroy the lives of countless gay men and lesbians working in sensitive positions. They also demonstrated some of the bizarre methods by which gay men and lesbians were identified.
The Problem of Homosexuality
Beginning in 1959 with a Special Panel on "Security Cases involving Character Weaknesses with Special Reference to the Problem of Homosexuality", the question of what to do with homosexuals and lesbians in the public service became a critical issue for Canada's security forces. According to one declassified memo:
Sexual abnormalities appear to be the favourite target of hostile intelligence agencies, and of these homosexuality is most often used. The nature of homosexuality appears to adapt itself to this kind of exploitation. By exercising fairly simple precautions, homosexuals are usually able to keep their habits hidden from those who are not specifically seeking them out. Further, homosexuals often appear to believe that the accepted ethical code which governs normal human relationships does not apply to them. Their propensity is often accompanied by other specific weaknesses such as excessive drinking with its resultant instabilities, a defiant attitude towards the rest of society, and a concurrent urge to seek out the company of persons with similar characteristics, often in disreputable bars, night clubs, or restaurants....From the small amount of information we have been able to find out about homosexual behaviour generally, certain characteristics appear to stand out - instability, willing self-deceit, defiance towards society, a tendency to surround oneself with persons of similar propensities, regardless of other considerations - none of which inspire the confidence one would hope to have in persons required to fill positions of trust and responsibility.
Weeding out the Homosexuals
Although the anti-homosexual purge was inspired by the Cold War hysteria prevalent in most Western countries during the 1950s (spurred on by Joseph McCarthy's anti-Communist crusade in the United States), the Canadian security agencies took a special zeal in weeding out homosexual men and women whereever they could be found. Not only were homosexuals arrested and prosecuted throughout Canada but Canadian immigration laws were passed in 1952 banning known homosexuals from entering the country. While never as public as the anti-homosexual purges in other countries (and lacking high-profile victims such as Alan Turing in the United Kingdom), the continuing spy trials and sex scandals from other countries helped fuel the perception that homosexuals were inherently dangerous, both to themselves and to their country. Lesbians were not initially pursued with the same ruthless intensity although criminal laws were revised in 1953 to make female homosexuality a crime in Canada. After 1953, both men and women faced the risk of being labelled a "Criminal Sexual Psychopath" whenever evidence of homosexual activity (consensual or not) found its way into the courts. For Canada's military, proven homosexual conduct was grounds for dishonourable discharge for both men and women. While the focus was on male recruits, lesbianism was also seen as a threat to military discipline due to the "unfeminine" activities of lesbians in the service. For cases of suspected homosexuals, military procedure called for a formal investigation (later enshrined under the 1967 Canadian Forces Administrative Order (CFAO) 19-20, Sexual Deviation - Investigation, Medical Investigation and Disposal for the "proper" handling and dismissal of serving men and women found guilty of homosexual conduct). Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, Canadian and American security agencies freely shared information on all perceived high-risk individuals (including possible homosexual activity of people in "sensitive" positions).
With consultation of security agencies on both sides of the border, a more formal procedure went into place in 1963 with the drafting of a new Cabinet Directive on "Security in the Public Services of Canada". While not referring to homosexuals specifically, the new directive referenced "illicit sexual behaviour" and called for an "attitude of much greater frankness whose reliability or loyalty is in doubt". Any prospective employee who openly admitted to homosexual conduct would either not be hired or else transferred to a less "sensitive" position (usually with less importance). For employees who were not forthcoming about their sexuality, the security agencies made little actual distinction between hidden homosexuals who were actually disloyal or who simply the potential of being disloyal. Since the RCMP was in charge of all security investigations, their agents had the primary responsibility of investigating suspected homosexuals in virtually every branch of the Canadian government (except for the military which had its own intelligence division). There was no independent review of the RCMP’s operation and accused homosexuals had no chance of defending themselves against accusations.
Over time, the RCMP investigations eventually affected thousands of men and women, whether they were civil servants or not. The total number of RCMP reports of suspected homosexuals rose from 1000 in 1960-1961 to 7500 in 1965-66. Since few statistics were kept, the actual number of men and women whose lives were destroyed by relentless RCMP investigations and accusations of homosexuality can only be estimated. For every high-profile case such as David Johnson, former Canadian ambassador to Moscow and his predecessor, John Watkins (who died of a heart attack following an RCMP interrogation), countless others were either fired, transferred or blacklisted based on suspected sexual improprieties.
Despite only one-third of the RCMP investigations actually involving people in the civil service, right-wingers in the Canadian government denounced Canada’s external affairs department and embassies around the world as “a notorious cess-pool of homosexuals and perverts”. The RCMP investigators in charge of locating homosexuals demanded and eventually got an expanded mandate and the list of suspects grew to include thousands of names. Although the Canadian government placed some controls on the RCMP to prevent them from publicly exposing homosexuals unless they were considered to be security risks, the RCMP often acted as judge and jury (since homosexuality was still a criminal offense at the time).
Whatever the reality, the perception that thousands of hidden homosexuals were undermining Canadian security meant that a better way of identifying them was needed. Fortunately, Canadian security agencies had their own expert on hand for that. Dr. F. Robert Wake of Carleton University was already a well-known figure in forensic circles with his work juvenile delinquency and deviancy. As the first chair of Carleton's Psychology Department as well as a researcher for the Royal Commission on the Criminal Law Relating to Criminal Sexual Psychopaths during the 1950s, he was well known to security agencies and seemed best suited for developing a better way of finding hidden homosexuals.
And he was definitely up for the challenge...
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