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Suffrage Succotash
by Susan Eskdale

Imagine a time when women were not allowed to vote and then think about some very brave women that lobbied for the right to vote. Canada's Suffrage Movement is to thank for women having the vote in present day Canada.

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Imagine a time, maybe not so long ago, when women were treated as naļve, child-like individuals. Some may jokingly say that we are still treated that way, but in truth our female ancestors often endured unbearable situations. The Suffrage Movement, which launched in the 1890s, in Canada, provided the main foundation for our role in today’s society. Women are recognised as being persons under the law, can vote, run for office, hold office, own businesses and do many other things that women just over 100 years ago would never have dreamed possible.

Nellie McClung emerged on the scene as the champion for women’s rights in the 1890s. An insurgence of women’s reform groups were formed and included; the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, the National Council of Women, the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) and the Dominion Women’s Enfranchisement Association. Within a span of less than twenty-two years, the rate of involvement in these ladies leagues was estimated to be one in every eight. Membership did seem to be most common amongst the middle-classed, middle-aged, English-speaking, protestant population. That is not to say that other segments of society did not participate in these movements, but the lower class did not have the same time and resources as the middle-class and as such were not as often able to participate in these movements.

With the appearance of the bicycle, the suffrage movement gained speed. Now women were able to go unaccompanied to different locations and could even shed the ankle-length dresses they had worn in favour of a looser fitting bloomer, which provided far more comfort. The independence of movement was a great gift in helping the members of the Suffrage movement to remain persistent in their aims to reform societal problems.

Nellie McClung was quick to point out that the mothering instinct would go a long ways towards curing the problems of society, including drunkenness, child labour and slums. If women were to actively change their roles then they must be afforded the right to vote. It would be by women placing their votes that they could help to eradicate some of the social ills.

Dr. Emily Stowe was one of the first women to lead the suffrage movement within Ontario. Emily had wanted to become a doctor but was denied admittance into medical school in Canada, this did not dissuade her from achieving her goals; she enrolled in the medical program at the New York Medical College for Women and graduated in 1868. She was the first female doctor to practice within Canada and set up shop in Toronto.

As a direct result of Emily Stowe’s experiences, she founded what was to eventually be known as the Dominion Women’s Enfranchisement Association. She recognised the need to have involvement from other suffragettes, in nations such as Britain and America, to keep the cause going strong in Canada. She arranged to have noted speakers such as Emmeline Pankhurst, Anna Shaw and Susan Anthony give public lectures. In 1886 the University of Toronto caved into public pressure and opened its school doors to female students. The right for women to vote was not given to all women in Canada at the same time; each province followed its own political pressures in granting the right to vote.

Adelaide Hoodless advanced the movement as well. As a result of the death of her infant son, from contaminated milk, she started classes on nutrition at the YWCA to educate women on the dangers of improperly stored food. With her help, similar programs were instituted in school curriculum and even found an audience in McGill University. Adelaide also founded the first Women’s Institute, which was a female version of the Farmers’ Institutes. Women now were able to learn more about the farm and household management. Perhaps her most noted contribution would be that she began the Victorian Order of Nurses, which would provide assistance to invalids.

The suffrage movement in Western Canada did not take as much to develop. Since women worked along side their husbands, to build their new farms, there was a greater endorsement of suffrage. Women were quick to vocalize their discontent at the fact that immigrants were granted the right to vote when long standing Canadian women were denied the right to vote.

In 1929 the Supreme Court decreed that women were persons for legal purposes. The women involved in this case were: Emily Murphy, Louise McKinney, Nellie McClung, Irene Parlby, and Henrietta Edwards. Each of these women spent time in Canada’s west and had impact on the suffrage movement.

The Suffrage Movement provided the very foundations for our rights and freedoms that we often take for granted. Let us never forget what it was like for the women who provided us with what we consider to be basic human rights.