Mr. Speaker, October 18 is the anniversary of the Persons case, which is a reminder that women's rights were hard won.
In 1927, Emily Murphy, Nellie McClung, Irene Parlby, Louise McKinney and Henrietta Muir Edwards asked the Supreme Court of Canada to declare that the word “person” included women. The answer was no, and they were denied access to judgeships and seats in the House of Commons and the Senate.
The case went before the British Privy Council, which ruled in their favour on October 18, 1929. The English lords determined “that the exclusion of women from all public offices is a relic of days more barbarous than ours”.
Let us pay tribute to them today for opening the first doors to gender equality.