Emily Murphy facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Emily Murphy
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| Born |
Emily Gowan Ferguson
14 March 1868 Cookstown, Ontario, Canada
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| Died | 27 October 1933 (aged 65) Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
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| Occupation | Magistrate, activist, author |
| Known for | Women's rights activist |
| Spouse(s) |
Arthur Murphy
(m. 1887) |
| Children | 4 |
Emily Murphy (born Emily Gowan Ferguson; 14 March 1868 – 27 October 1933) was a Canadian women's rights activist and author. In 1916, she made history as the first female magistrate (a type of judge) in Canada. She was also the fifth woman to hold such a position in the entire British Empire.
Emily Murphy is best known for her important work in Canadian feminism. She helped answer the question of whether women were "qualified persons" who could serve in the Senate. The Senate is a part of Canada's government that helps make laws.
Murphy was one of "The Famous Five" (also called "The Valiant Five"). This group of Canadian women's rights activists included Henrietta Muir Edwards, Nellie McClung, Louise McKinney, and Irene Parlby. In 1927, they started the "Persons Case." They argued that women should be considered "qualified persons" and allowed to sit in the Senate.
The Supreme Court of Canada first said no. But the women appealed to the highest court for Canada at that time, the British Privy Council. There, they won their case! This was a huge victory for women's rights in Canada.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Emily Murphy was born in Cookstown, Ontario. She was the third child of Isaac Ferguson and Emily Gowan. Her father was a successful businessman. Emily often joined her two older brothers in their adventures. Her father encouraged all his children to share responsibilities equally.
Emily grew up with strong influences from her family. Her maternal grandfather, Ogle R. Gowan, was a politician. She also had uncles who were judges and senators. Her family believed in the importance of a good education.
Emily attended Bishop Strachan School, a private school for girls in Toronto. There, she met her future husband, Arthur Murphy. He was 11 years older than her.
In 1887, Emily and Arthur married. They had four daughters: Madeleine, Evelyn, Doris, and Kathleen. Sadly, Doris passed away. After this loss, the family moved west to Swan River, Manitoba, in 1903. They later settled in Edmonton, Alberta, in 1907.
Championing Women's Rights
Protecting Property Rights: The Dower Act
While her husband Arthur worked as a priest, Emily Murphy explored her new surroundings. She became very aware of the challenges people faced, especially poverty.
When her children grew up, Emily began to organize women's groups. These groups helped isolated women meet, share ideas, and plan projects. Emily also started speaking out about the difficult living conditions in society.
Her passion for women's and children's rights grew stronger after hearing about an unfair situation. An Albertan woman's husband sold their family farm. He then left his wife and children with no home or money. At that time, property laws did not protect the wife.
This case inspired Emily to fight for married women's property rights. With support from many women, she pushed the Alberta government to change the laws. In 1916, Emily successfully convinced the Alberta legislature to pass the Dower Act. This law gave a woman legal rights to one-third of her husband's property. This first political win made Emily Murphy famous as a women's rights activist.
Becoming Canada's First Female Judge
Emily's success with the Dower Act and her work with women's groups led her to ask for a female judge in the women's court.
In 1916, Emily and other women tried to watch a trial involving women. They were told to leave the courtroom because the case was "not fit for mixed company." Emily found this unacceptable. She argued that if the evidence was not suitable for everyone, then a special court with women judges should be created for women.
Her request was approved! Emily Murphy became the first woman police magistrate in the British Empire.
However, her appointment as a judge faced a challenge. In her first case, a lawyer questioned her right to make a judgment. He argued that women were not legally considered "persons." The Provincial Supreme Court rejected this argument.
The Historic Persons Case
In 1917, Emily Murphy led the fight to have women officially declared "persons" in Canada. This was important because being a "person" was necessary to serve in the Senate. Women had gained (or were about to gain) the right to vote in many parts of Canada. But they still couldn't be senators.
An Edmonton lawyer, Eardley Jackson, challenged Emily's position as a judge. He claimed women were not "persons" under an important law called the British North America Act 1867. This idea came from an old British law from 1876. It said women could face punishments but not have rights and privileges. His challenge was quickly dismissed.
In 1919, Emily Murphy led a conference where women called for a female senator. Many women's groups supported this idea and wanted Emily to be the first.
Emily then planned to ask for a clear answer about women's status in the British North America Act 1867. She wanted to know how women could become senators. She gathered four other amazing Albertan women to help her. On August 27, 1927, Emily and Nellie McClung, Louise McKinney, Henrietta Edwards, and Irene Parlby signed a petition. They asked the Canadian government to send this question to the Supreme Court of Canada.
The government rephrased their question for the Supreme Court: "Does the word 'person' in Section 24 of the British North America Act include female persons?"
This campaign became known as The Persons Case. In March 1928, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that women were not qualified to sit in the Senate. The five women did not give up. They appealed to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in Britain, which was Canada's highest court at the time.
On October 18, 1929, the Privy Council made a landmark decision. They declared that 'persons' in the British North America Act 1867 included both males and females. This meant women were finally eligible to serve in the Senate!
Despite this victory, Emily Murphy never became a senator. The first Senate seat that opened was in Quebec, but Emily lived in Alberta. Also, the Prime Minister at the time was from a different political party than Emily. She was passed over for another woman, Cairine Wilson, in 1930. Later, she was again not chosen for a Senate seat because of her religion. Emily Murphy passed away in 1933, still dreaming of serving in Canada's Senate.
The five women who fought the Persons Case are known as the Famous Five. They are celebrated as leaders in social reform and women's rights. They challenged old rules and set an important example in Canadian history. In Canada's Senate Chamber, a plaque honors them. It says they helped women be recognized as persons eligible for the Senate. Emily Murphy and the Famous Five were also featured on the back of Canadian 50-dollar bills issued in 2004.
In October 2009, the Senate voted to name Murphy and the rest of the Five Canada's first "honorary senators."
Later Views and Legacy
Emily Murphy made huge contributions to women's rights in Canada. However, some of her later ideas and views are seen as controversial and have been criticized.
In the early 1900s, many people believed that science could solve social problems. Emily Murphy was one of them. She thought that some problems in society came from mental differences.
Emily was a pacifist, meaning she believed in peace and was against war. She thought that wars happened because countries needed more land for their growing populations. She believed that if populations were controlled, there would be less need for land, and wars might stop.
Her solution to these social issues was eugenics. This was a belief that society could be improved by controlling who reproduced. She thought that people with mental or social challenges had more children than "human thoroughbreds," which meant people she considered more capable. She wrote that children with mental differences were "a menace to society and an enormous cost to the state." She believed that science showed these conditions could be passed down through families. She even wrote to a government minister, saying it was "a neglect amounting to a crime" to let certain women keep having children.
Because of these complex views, Emily Murphy's legacy is debated.
Emily Murphy's house in Edmonton, Alberta (at 11011 - 88th Avenue) is a recognized historic place in Canada. She lived there from 1919 until her death in 1933. Today, it is on the University of Alberta campus and houses Student Legal Services.
In 1958, the Canadian government recognized her as a Person of National Historic Significance. A plaque honoring her is at Emily Murphy Park in Edmonton. The "National Persons" case was also recognized as a National Historic Event in 1997 with a plaque at the same location.
See also
In Spanish: Emily Murphy para niños
