I Am A Person
Hello, my name is Michael. And, I am a Person.
I’ve always been a person. I’d guess I’ve been a person all my life.
And, like you. You are Persons.
As it is in all of Canada, all Canadians are persons.
My parents, they are Persons.
And my grandparents, they were. Well… My grandfathers were persons, but my grandmothers weren’t always persons. My grandmothers share a story that all Canadian women shared in the early 1900’s. Women were not considered persons by Canadian law, not until the 18th of October, 1929.
How? Why? What happened? What did this mean?
Well, a woman could not become a Senator in Canada’s Parliament by the fact that women were not considered “persons”, according to the interpretation of a document called the British North America Act.
This is what Emily Murphy learned when she wanted to become a Canadian Senator. Even with a list of 500,000 signatures supporting her (over 5% of the Canadian population back then), Prime Minister Robert Borden rejected her nomination for the Senate, because, she was not a person.
Many conversations over tea were had by many women on the issue. And tea did play a part in the guise of a Pink Tea Meetings. And, one day, Emily Murphy invited some friends, Irene Parlby, Nellie McClung, Louise McKinney, and Henrietta Muir Edwards over for tea. And these five women decided to petition the Federal Government to refer the matter to the Supreme Court of Canada.
Does the word “Persons” include female persons?
The Supreme Court did not rule in favour of the five petitioners.
Although the Supreme Court did state that “There can be no doubt that the word ‘persons’ when standing alone (prima facie) includes women” (well, of course). But, when “Understood to mean ‘Are women eligible for appointment to the Senate of Canada,’ the question is answered in the negative.”
So that to say that Women are persons too… but, not equally so?
Well, these women did not take this sitting down. Perhaps after a settling cup of tea, they decided to send their petition to London.
At that time there existed within the British Empire, one more court of the last resort, the Judicial Committee of the Imperial Privy Council. And these becoming famous five ladies asked the Privy Council to reverse the decision of the Supreme Court of Canada.
And, the Privy Council did.
The Lord Chancellor of the Council, Viscount Sankey, stated that “the exclusion of women from all public offices is a relic of days more barbarous than ours,” and that “to those who ask why the word [“person”] should include females, the obvious answer is why should it not.”
And why should it not? Why should women not be considered equal in capacity as persons:
– to hold public office
– to drive a vehicle
– to vote
– to receive equal pay
– or to be a Senator in the Canadian Parliament
I am sure this list of inequalities can go on, for these are struggles of inequality that I do not know, I could not experience, and I would not understand. Struggles for rights and privileges that I, as a man, perhaps take for granted: the right to be equal in all aspects of life and society.
Sadly, none of these five women ever became senators, but in 2009, the Canadian Senate recognised the Famous Five, Emily, Irene, Nellie, Louise, and Henrietta, by posthumously bestowing upon them the titles of “Honorary Senators”.
In Canada, we celebrate October 18 as Persons Day, in honour of the decision made in 1929;
October 11 as International Day of the Girl;
and the month of October as Women’s History Month.
And, today, we acknowledge these important dates with an Affirming Minute.
And thank you, to all Persons.
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edwards_v_Canada_(AG)
https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/persons-case
http://www.famou5.ca/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Famous_Five_(Canada)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emily_Murphy
Library and Archives of Canada
http://www.heroines.ca/celebrate/statuepersonscal.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Sankey,_1st_Viscount_Sankey#/media/File:1stViscountSankey.jpg