19271927 – 18 October 1929 · Ottawa

The Persons Case

Bronze statues of the Famous Five on Parliament Hill, Ottawa, one holding a newspaper reading Women are Persons — Photo: John.B.Codrington. CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Five Alberta women, Emily Murphy, Nellie McClung, Irene Parlby, Louise McKinney and Henrietta Muir Edwards, asked whether women counted as 'persons' who could sit in the Senate. The Supreme Court of Canada said no in 1928; in October 1929 the Privy Council in London overturned it, calling the constitution 'a living tree'. Cairine Wilson became the first woman senator in 1930.

Women's History
Political History
Civil Rights & Human Rights
Ottawa, Canada

Sites

Site 1: 'Women Are Persons!' monument, Parliament HillBronze figures of the Famous Five around an empty chair, inviting visitors to sit.Map ↗
Site 2: Senate of Canada BuildingFormer railway station where the Senate, open to women since 1930, now sits.Map ↗