The Persons Case, a Defining Moment for Canada.
Madeleine Balfour
History 111
Dr. Denis Dubord
May 26, 2017
In 2015, the Prime Minister of Canada announced a gender balanced cabinet in which half of its members were women. However, it was not until the Emily Murphy and the Famous Five won the Persons Case, a mere 88 years ago, that women were legally considered people. In the mid to late 19th century, political, and public life was largely run by men at the provincial and municipal levels. The societal and political atmosphere for women was severely limited; women were expected to be homemakers and were frowned upon for working outside of the home if they were married1. They could
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She campaigned for the protection of women and children, who, in the late 19th century and early 20th century, had meager protection under the law2. In 1916, Murphy was, arguably, the catalyst for the Persons Case with her involvement in a trial in which women were accused of prostitution. This trial was attended by Murphy and other women but they were rejected on the basis that women were not welcome at the tribunal. Murphy appealed to Charles Wilson Cross, the Attorney General of Alberta, by saying “if the evidence is not fit for mixed company, then the government must set up a court presided by women, to try other women1.” Unexpectedly, the Attorney General agreed and appointed her as the Police Magistrate of the Court of Edmonton1. Regardless of her appointment, she was met with heated resistance by her male peers. Her first case was challenged by the defence lawyer claiming she was not a person under the British North America Act of 1867 3. This was due to ambiguous and gendered language in Section 24 of the British North America Act of 1867. The BNA act of 1867, also known as the Constitution Act, were a collection of policies in the Constitution of Canada. Section 24 stated that only “qualified persons” could be appointed to the Canadian Senate5. While Murphy’s sentence as magistrate was upheld by the Supreme Court of Alberta, she became inspired to campaign …show more content…
Uglow, Frances Hinton, and Maggy Hendry. 4th ed. Macmillan Publishers Ltd, 2005 3) Valerie Knowles, First Person: A Biography of Cairine Wilson Canada'as First Woman Senator. Louiseville: Dundurn Press Ltd., 1988. 4)Robert J. Sharpe, Patricia I. McMahon Persons Case: The Origins and Legacy of the Fight for Legal Personhood. Toronto: Univ of Toronto Press, 2007, 1-206 5) Michael Dorland and Maurice René. Charland, Law, rhetoric and irony in the formation of Canadian civil culture (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2002), 218. 6) Vivien Hughes. "How the Famous Five in Canada Won Personhood for Women." London Journal of Canadian Studies 17 (2002): 60-70. Accessed May 20, 2017. Canadian High Comission. 7)"The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council Decisions." Henrietta Muir Edwards and others (Appeal No. 121 of 1928) v The Attorney General of Canada (Canada) [1929] UKPC 86 (18 October 1929). Accessed May 25, 2017.
Certainly, the case exposed the underhanded method of tax evasion as a means in which to punish Desmond for violating the invisible cods of conduct in the private sector venue of the Roseland Theater. The legal judgment of owing “one cent” for a tax violation was the ultimate decision of the court. This “echo” of the Jim Crow laws defines the underlying resistance to desegregation in Nova Scotia, which made an impact on the social consciousness of the people. The judgment of the courts in relation to the purchase of a ticket, which would eventually galvanize the Civil Rights Movement in Canada. These factors define the sentencing of the Desmond case as another means in which a racially motivated legal institution would lay the foundations for Civil Rights actions against these underhanded methods of legal enforcement of racism in
(Sociocultural: A Problem-Based Approach, 2016). The Mountie myth is one of the stories that employ the ideas of Canada’s open-mindedness and justice towards its minorities to create national identity. The Quebec referendums from the 1980s to 1995 and the Calgary pact that were made in September 1997 present the past as a ‘heritage’ of tolerance. The story of Canada’s tolerant nationhood has often been framed in terms of its policy of “multiculturalism”, a policy defined in official government ideology as a ‘fundamental characteristic of Canadian heritage and identity’. Canada is often described as a ‘cultural mosaic’ in order to distinguish it from the American culture ‘melting pot’ (Mackey, 1998).
Pierre Elliott Trudeau is a significant person in the history of my theme, Canadian politics in relation to the legal system. As the 15th Prime Minister of Canada, he played a huge role in shaping Canada through his political career by upholding a philosophy of Canada united as one through a strong federal government. In the wake of the 1980 referendum win, Trudeau immediately wanted to fulfill the constitutional promise that he made during his campaign. It was he who had the vision of patriating the Constitution, and for the following 18 months this would become his top priority. Being the most reluctant to include an entrenched Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in the Constitution, he immediately formed a commission to get ideas from
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In the 2015 book, Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Irin Carmon and Shana Knizhnik evaluate the significant role Ginsburg has had to United States policy on equality and women’s rights. The authors of Notorious RBG, present the structured internal initiative and personal influences of Ginsburg, that contributed to her life-long achievement in academics and scholarly enlightenment. Carmon and Knizhnik describe how Ginsburg juggled her professional aspirations and family life while continuing to present the legal world with arguments that aided in shifting popular opinion about female equality compared to males in our society. In Notorious RBG, Ginsburg’s meticulous and tireless devotion to cases for the Women’s Project
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The Constitution Act of 1982 was exceedingly important in reshaping Canada’s constitutional arrangements. It consists of seven parts, including the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Aboriginal Rights, and Constitutional Amendment Rights. The Act codified and affirmed common-law rights based on centuries of British judicial precedent and statutes. It served as a solid foundation for the judiciary’s reviewing of legislative and executive actions, and allowed Canada to change its constitution without the approval of the British Parliament. Most importantly, the Act finally put an end to the Canadian parliamentary supremacy that was extant before the Act was entrenched, which granted the legislative branch the utmost sovereignty over all
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General Info: - 19th century= Canadian women organizing to change place in society= equality - The women 's movement = demanded justice. achieved some equality for Canadian women in legal and political ways. - Canadian woman tried to change society for better - Fought for their rights - Previous to WW1: low paying jobs for women - Ended careers once married - National council of women formed in 1893. Helped improved public health, immigrants, factory workers - In 1919 eleven women in Ontario became lawyers - In 1927 first woman engineer graduated U of T Voting/ political: - 1893- national council of women was founded - By 1900- throughout Canada, municipal voting privileges for propertied woman were general - 1918- council contributed to
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