Edwards Vs Canada

The Persons Case, also known as Edwards v Canada, is a well known case that changed the roles of Canadian women. Canadian women were not considered persons according to the 1876 British Common Law Ruling. Although many of Canada's provinces now permitted women to vote, they were still unable to run for public positions. In 1916 Emily Murphy became a judge in Edmonton, Alberta. The Alberta Supreme Court have already encountered this issue before, therefore already recognized females as ‘persons’. She was challenged by multiple lawyers every time she judged a case, that claimed she was not a person, and was unfit to perform her duties. Emily Murphy was the first magistrate in British History. This drove Emily’s desire becoming the first female senator as well. She asked her lawyer, which also is her brother, for help concerning the issue. After some time, her brother advised her to appeal to the court with four other people. Emily invited four women, which they were eventually recognized as the Famous Five, (Henrietta Muir Edwards, Nellie McClung, Louise McKinney and Irene Parlby) to join her petition. They inquired the question: “Does the word ‘person’ in section 24 of the British North American act include female ‘persons’ ?” The supreme court of Canada answered no shortly

Women, although were able to vote, did not have much authority over many aspects of their lives. They were not given a voice to express or represent themselves. They were not considered equivalent to men. The Persons Case allowed them to run for public positions, attend university and get better a education. They were finally able to control their life, make decisions and were given more opportunities, as to what they want to become, rather than always teachers, nurses, and other “women suitable” jobs. Women with the power to control their lives, could do much more than