WOMEN Changing Roles and Rights

WOMEN AND CHANGE

• women started demanding rights in late 19th and early 20th century

- right to vote - better labour laws, health care and

opportunities in education and jobs

• women were not welcome to pursue careers in medicine, law, engineering, and other higher levels of education

• In 1893 the National Council of Women of Canada was formed (stopped being active in 2009)

• they advocated women’s rights such as:- public health- female factory workers rights - immigrant lives - prisoners situations

WOMEN AND CHANGE 2

Before World War One - women had very limited, low paying jobs available- expected to drop their job when married - women were seen as domestic servants

During World War One - most men away in the war- this opened up many

job opportunities- women were allowed to have these industrial and

other jobs because they need to be done - although they got payed less this was still a big

significance at the time

Post World War One - these jobs were considered temporary and when

men came back women were expected to give up their jobs

POLITICAL CHANGE

• Canadian women began the campaign for suffrage with the leadership of Emily Stowe in 1870’s.

• Stowe was the first women to practise medicine in Canada.• She went to the U.S. for her degree. • In the early 1900’s Nellie McClung, Henrietta Muir Edwards, Louise

McKinney and Emily Murphy fought for women’s right to vote. • Ontario was the first province to allow some women (widows, and

unmarried women who owned property) to vote during WW1.• By 1918, some women could vote in provincial elections in 6 provinces.• In 1921, federal election, Agnes MacPhail became Canada’s first women

of Parliament.• MacPhail was for the Progressive Party

The Persons Case - Emily Murphy And The Alberta Senate

- The end of 1919 most women in Canada could vote and be in office by election

- But some people still challenged women’s right to be appointed judges and senators

- In 1916 in Alberta a woman named Emily Murphy a judge in the British Empire.

- Some lawyers thought that her judgment didn’t mean anything to anyone, but no-matter the Alberta courts decided that she was qualified to hold the job and make those kind of decisions

- Then in 1917 she was a candidate for the senate but Prime Minister Robert Borden refused to even consider her as a member of the senate on the

- grounds that she was not qualified enough… but we all know why he really didn’t let her.

- This set in place the “persons case” a legal case that took over 12 years to solve.

THE PERSONS CASE - BRITISH NORTH AMERICAN

ACT OF 1867- The British North American Act of 1867, Canada’s constitution at the time, said that

only “qualified persons” could be a part of the senate, but it did not define “persons”

- It did say that “women are persons in matters of pains and penalties, but are not persons in matters of rights and privileges.” (so if a woman were to break a law she would get the penalty of that, but she doesn’t have any rights)

- After that “the famous five;” Emily Murphy, Henrietta Muir Edwards, Nellie McClung, Louise Mckinney, and Irene Parlby, all teamed up to take the case of the supreme court of Canada.

- This court ruled that because men were persons, only men could be appointed senators.

- Back then the Supreme Court decisions could be appealed to the Privy Council in Britain, this meant the women took the case next.

WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE

• Marie-joseph Demers was member of parliament• He made these remarks in the house of commons in May 1918• There must be respect• John Burnham was a member of parliament• Argued against Demer’s position in the same debate • He said that he’d heard enough of women’s being idealized• John Burnham said if women want to do something let them do it like for

example voting• Nellie McClung was a author and advocate for women’s rights • Wrote her book in 1915• Testimony let women have the right to vote• Some man from the public said what will happen to the kids when the women

goes to vote