Blog #2 - Nelly McClung

1. Explain the importance of McClung and the Persons Case in terms of women's rights in Canada.

In 1929, Nellie McClung and four other women presented a petition demanding that women be considered as 'persons' in the section of the British North American Act which define the Canadian Senate. These feminine activists wanted to present equality with women's and men's rights. This was an extremely courageous act, because up until that point women had been excluded from the term as it only pertained to men. McClung and the four women won the Persons Case: the judicial decision that women as "persons" had the right to be appointed to the non-elected Canadian Senate.

2. Explain how she was an activist.

Nellie McClung was a very well-known feminine activist in the early 1900's. She wrote a series of novels, as well as short stories & articles pertaining to women and their rights using satirical methods of humor. McClung was also a very popular speaker in demand throughout the West. Her writing and speaking began to catch the attention of people which essentially led to her winning the Persons Case. She toured different countries & fought for different rights for women, such as: better rural health care, equality in the Divorce Act, and much more. As well as all of these examples of her activism, she ran for political office as a Member of the Legislative Assembly which she won and held until 1926.

3. Photo of Nellie McClung.