Near the Old Man of Storr, Scotland I took this in 2004

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

International Women's Day

Happy International Women's Day!

Celebrating 100 years of recognizing women's worth!


The 3 waves of feminism have seen a great deal of changes; namely women being granted the vote, recognizing, in law, that women are not "chattle" belonging to their fathers, then transferred to their husbands; and , it should be said here, that though the laws have, for the most part, recognized women as people, many women who get married in 'traditional' ( read: overtly patriarchal) ceremonies, still want to be treated as property and asked to be 'given away' by their fathers. For many, claiming their worth is terrifying.

However, today is a great achievement. 100 years of not giving up, shutting up or giving in!

Here's a great quote from Nellie McClung, one of Canada's preeminent suffragettes I love this:

"Never retreat; never explain; never apologize. Get the job done and let them howl.
"
McClung, an amazing trailblazer in Canada's first wave of feminism, was part of a group we can call the ferocious five, comprised of herself plus
Emily Murphy, Irene Parlby, Louise McKinney, and Henrietta Edwards. Together, they challenged the Canadian Constitution, in the 'persons case'. The issue they were challenging was the government's sexist language and opinion, which said that women were not persons, only men.
"
Canada's constitution, then the British North America Act, stated that one must be a "person" to serve in the Senate, but in 1928 the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that when the BNA Act was written in 1867, the term "person" was not meant to include women, but only men. The women appealed the decision to the Judicial Committee of the British Privy Council, then the highest court for Canadian constitutional interpretation. In October 1929 the Judicial Committee ruled that Canadian women were, in fact, persons and could be appointed to the Senate. " (http://www.mta.ca/about_canada/study_guide/famous_women/nellie_mcclung.html)

This type of misogyny is still true today, where people use terms like "man-made" or "man-kind", language that I have challenged my whole life, and will continue to do so

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