Declaration, by members of the Italian Church of the Redeemer, Unsigned, June 15, 1940

This typewritten declaration was made by unidentified members of the Italian Church of the Redeemer on June 15, 1940. The declaration is not signed but a handwritten note in pencil identifies the name of [Domenico] Scalera, who was the minister of the church located in Montreal, Quebec. The rest of the handwritting is difficult to decipher.

The declaration states the loyalty of the parishioners to the monarchy and Canada, and denies any involvement with fascism.

Scalera had replaced the disgraced minister Augusto Bersani, who research shows acted as a RCMP informant. At the time of writing, it appears Scalera was still free -- he was interned on July 12, 1940. However, the timeframe would place the document after the mass arrests that occurred on June 10th, which would have created fear and unease in the Italian community of Montreal.

Other members of the church were also interned, including the Monaco brothers.