The Rise And Fall Of The Old Working Class

Half a century ago the working class or proletariat — however one chose to define them, and definitions varied — were surely something close to half the population or more. In a much more real sense than today they were a community, or string of communities. No sense of human or social failure hung above them; to be among them was to be among a mainstream. As in any thriving, self-confident and culturally rich community, people respected each other and looked after each other. The existence of social barriers (though permeable) to upward mobility sharpened self-definition and a sense of belonging and shared responsibility.

That's from a Matthew Parris column, in the Spectator, giving out about the consequences of social mobility in Britain. It occurred to me that much the same can be said of the trajectory of the Canadian working class, perhaps especially noticeable in the case of the transformation of Vancouver in recent years. Been to Hastings and Main lately?

The photograph above is from around Granville and Smythe; from the collection of the great Fred Herzog. In his footsteps, these days you'll find the likes of Keith Freeman.