User:Auric/1947 Chocolate Candy Bar Strike

The 1947 Chocolate Candy Bar Strike was a brief strike in 1947 over rising candy bar prices. The protest was later squelched as a plot by the Communist Party.

Strike
Rising post-war inflation resulted in the price of a 3 oz. candy bar rising to 8 cents, from the previous 5 cents, a 60 percent rise. Children in the town of Ladysmith, British Columbia discovered this on April 25, 1947. They decided to protest this and constructed signs and marched in town. A local paper published a story on the march, resulting in a cross-Canada strike. On April 30, 200 children marched on the steps of the British Columbia capitol building, shutting down the legislature. Other protests occurred in capital cities across Canada. Sales of candy bars in Canada dropped 80 percent.

Some adults supported the strike. Among these was the National Federation of Labour Youth (NFLY), which was affiliated with the Canadian Communist Party.

On May 3, a story ran in the Toronto Evening Telegram, about an anonymous source that claimed that the strike was the idea of NFLY and hence the Communist Party. Following the story, plans for a large rally in Toronto dissolved, and the strike as well.