Canadian History Project: Women's Rights and the Persons Case Impact

This project provides an outline of Canadian history, focusing on the impact of the "Famous Five" and the "Persons Case" on women's rights in Canada. It highlights the exclusion of women in historical narratives and emphasizes the significant contributions of women, particularly during wartime. The project details the exhibit's message, which is to be conveyed through a booklet accompanying a bronze statue of the Famous Five, and outlines the use of scholarly sources, including books, reports, newspapers, and journal articles. The exhibit aims to recognize the important role women played in shaping Canadian history and advocating for their rights, filling new roles and maintaining traditional ones. The references provided include a range of academic sources that support the research and findings presented in the project.

Running head: CANADIAN HISTORY 1
Canadian History: An Outline
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation

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Exhibit: Bronze Statue entitled Women Are Persons!
This exhibit explores Alberta’s “Famous Five,” petitioners in one of Canada’s most
famous case entitled Persons Case. It was in 1927 when the case was tabled before Canada’s
Supreme Court followed by a decision in the Judicial Council of Britain’s Privy Council
(Canada’s highest ranking court at the moment) in 1929. Essentially, the five women had been
involved in vigorous campaigns aimed at advocating for women’s rights and they enjoyed both
an international and national reputation.
Why I Choose the Topic
For too long, the literature on Canadian history has focused more on the great men of
Canada while seemingly excluding the women. Notably, the women of Canada, as in the case of
the “Famous Five,” impacted the history of Canada in one way or another. Though it was not
easy, women successfully filled the new roles created by wartime demands, while maintaining
the roles of traditional females. Hence, there is need to grant the women their worthy
recognition.
Inclusions to the Exhibit
The message, as encoded by the exhibit, will be explained to the audience through the use
of a small booklet. The booklet will be placed just above the exhibit so that the people who come
along will just have to flip through the pages to get the deeper meaning of the portrait.
Medium to be used
The exhibition will be presented in form of an essay through MS Word.

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Sources to be used
The sources used for this work are scholarly sources, also known as academic sources.
They will include books, published expert reports, newspapers, videos, websites, and journal
articles as outlined in the reference section below.

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References
Dunstan, A. (2014). Nineteenth-Century Sculpture and the Imprint of Authenticity. 19:
Interdisciplinary Studies in the Long Nineteenth Century.
Elgersman, M. G. (2014). Unyielding spirits: Black women and slavery in early Canada and
Jamaica. Routledge.
Epp, M., & Iacovetta, F. (Eds.). (2016). Sisters or strangers?: immigrant, ethnic, and racialized
women in Canadian history(Vol. 44). University of Toronto Press.
Explore the statues, monuments, and memorials of the Hill – Canada's Parliamentary Precinct -
PWGSC. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca/citeparlementaire-
parliamentaryprecinct/decouvrez-discover/statues-eng.html
Famous Five - The Canadian Encyclopedia. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/famous-5/
Fildes, V., Marks, L., & Marland, H. (Eds.). (2013). Women and Children First (Routledge
Revivals): International Maternal and Infant Welfare, 1870-1945. Routledge.
Innis, H. A. (2017). Essays in Canadian economic history. University of Toronto Press.
Kaufman, B. E., & Taras, D. G. (2016). Nonunion employee representation: history,
contemporary practice, and policy. Routledge.
Kröller, E. M. (Ed.). (2017). The Cambridge companion to Canadian literature. Cambridge
University Press.

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Lloyd, D. W. (2014). Battlefield Tourism: Pilgrimage and the commemoration of the Great War
in Britain, Australia and Canada, 1919-1939. A&C Black.
McPhedran, S., & Mauser, G. (2013). Lethal firearm-related violence against Canadian women:
Did tightening gun laws have an impact on women’s health and safety. Violence and
victims, 28(5), 875-883.
Rutherdale, M. (2014). Women and the White Man's God: Gender and Race in the Canadian
Mission Field. UBC Press.
Rutherdale, M., & Pickles, K. (Eds.). (2014). Contact Zones: Aboriginal and settler women in
Canada's colonial past. UBC Press.
Statues of Famous Five entitled Women are person grounds of the Parliament Hill City of
Ottawa - Photo & Travel Idea Canada. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.canada-
photos.com/picture/statues-of-famous-five-entitled-women-are-persons-grounds-of-
parliament-hill-city-of-ottawa-6339.htm
Stevens, Q., & Franck, K. A. (2015). Memorials as Spaces of Engagement: Design, Use, and
Meaning. Routledge.
To some, it's the Infamous Five - The Globe and Mail. (n.d.). Retrieved from
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/to-some-its-the-infamous-five/article746377/

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