2011 National Household Survey: The Jewish Community of Montreal. Part 10: Holocaust Survivors

Among the highlights of this 2011 Statistics Canada survey are: there were 5,795 Holocaust Survivors representing 33.1% of Jewish seniors residing in the Montreal CMA in 2011. In short, almost a third of Montreal’s Jewish elderly are Survivors. Of these, there were 4,520 Child Survivors and 1,280 Adult Survivors. Survivors comprised a larger percentage of individuals who are 75+ years than Jews who were not Survivors: 63.3% and 51.7% respectively. The proportion of individuals who were often disabled was somewhat larger among Survivors (25.3%) than for Jewish non-Survivors (19.4%) and the total senior population in the Montreal CMA (17.4%). More than a quarter (27.3%) of Montreal's Survivors lived below the poverty line in 2011, comprising 1,580 individuals. The level of poverty among Survivors was significantly higher than that of Jewish seniors who were non-Survivors (15.7%). The poverty rate among Survivors 66-74 years (20.9%) was much higher than Jewish non-Survivors in the same age group (13.1%). The poverty level for Survivors 75+ years (31%) was significantly higher than that for Jewish non-Survivors in the same age group (18.1%), and higher than that for the total Montreal population who were 75+ years (26.8%). Male Survivors had a much lower risk of poverty than females (19.3% and 32.9% respectively). In the case of male Survivors, increasing age seems to be associated with higher levels of poverty, although the trend is not striking. On the other hand, the risk of poverty for female Survivors increased dramatically as they got older. About a quarter (24.3%) of female Survivors 66-74 years were poor; 34.9% of those 75-84 years were poor; and 42.7% of those 85+ years were poor. The segment of Survivors most likely to experience economic disadvantage was “females living alone”. More than half (51.5%) of this group lived under the poverty line. Male Survivors living alone also had a very high poverty level, at 46%.

Montreal

Federation CJA and Jewish Federations of Canada-UIA

December 2015

iv-32p.

en