Sexual Oppression In Canada

Whereas the women’s suffrage movements focused mainly on overturning legal obstacles to equality, the feminist movements successfully addressed a broad range of other feminist issues. The first dealt primarily with voting rights and the latter dealt with inequalities such as equal pay and reproductive rights. Both movements made vast gains to the social and legal status of women. One reached its goals while the other continues to fight for women’s rights.

Every woman has the right to moral, legal and political choice. As we look to the past, women fought for the right to be treated the same as men and fundamentally to have the same rights as men. Prior to the turn of the century, women had little to no rights. World War I and II gave way to change, allowing women to work and eventually allowing them to vote. The feminist movement has made drastic progress since the war. Today women are seen as equal and have the right not only to vote, but to be educated. In 1977 the Canadian Human Rights Act ensured that women could no longer be discriminated based on their sex, race, religion or sexuality. The act specified that there must be “equal pay for

Throughout time women and their rights have varied among where they are living and the people that surround them. Some of the major changes with women’s rights is giving them the right to vote, reproductive rights, and the right to work for equal pay. Another thing that varies throughout time is women’s roles. For example 100 years ago the only jobs that women could have was to either be a housewife, nurse, or a teacher. Until about 1910, women didn’t really fight for their rights and what they could do. In 1910, women started to voice their opinions in society and fought for the right to vote. Though things have changed greatly today, there are still women in the world that believe in the “traditional way” and prefer to still wait on

Throughout this course, we learn that women’s studies originated as a concerned at the time that “women and men noticed the absence, misrepresentation, and trivialization of women [in addition to] the ways women were systematically excluded from many positions of power and authority” (Shaw, Lee 1). It has always been known that in the past, men have had more privilege than women. Women have battled for centuries against certain patterns of inadequacy that all women experience. Every culture and customs have divergent female identities, however this does not hinder the fact that many of these cultures are based on patriarchal past where men hold more rights than women. Canadian women have sought to overcome these stereotypes and have managed to gain a position of near equality. This was

Women were first granted the right to vote federally in 1918. In 1940, Québec was the last province to do so. In 1951, the Northwest Territories became the last territory to grant women the vote. Only 65 years ago, women could not vote in the northwest territories. Woman were not permitted to go to most universities or colleges, because if woman went of to college or university, who was supposed to stay home and raise the family. Woman could not have a credit card with their own name on it. They would have to use their husband's credit card. All of these things woman were not allowed to do or not allowed to have, but men were allowed to have and do these things. This was very biased and it was very unfair to women. Woman wanted to get jobs. Woman wanted to go to college and university, and woman wanted to vote, which leads us to the persons case. In 1927 a group of 5 women from the west wanted a female in the senate,but they were told they have to be a person to be in the senate, and woman were not listed as people. (Canadian constitution did not list woman as people). They went to the supreme court of Canada to see if woman were considered people, and the supreme court of Canada said they were not. In 1927 we were still under British rule, so the five woman went to the British privy council. They told the group that woman were considered persons, and the constitution must be reworded. In 1931, Canada became an independent country, we

This is true for not only the politician aspect of Canada, but many others as well. “In 1974, women accounted for 34% of Canada’s labour force.” (4 NELLIE BOOK) In terms of politics, “In recent years women have achieved major political positions such as Speakers of the House of Commons, Justices of the Supreme Court of Canada (Louise Charron), Governor General of Canada (Michaelle Jean), Kim Campbell (Canada’s first, and to date female prime minister), and many more.” (5 NELLIE). After all of these achievements, there were many events held by the Canadian government,” some of the latest events that honoured the accomplishments of the Famous Five and their Person’s Case were: The Famous Five monument unveiling at Parliament Hill in Ottawa (1999), the 75th anniversary of the Person’s case was commemoration (2004), and the Bank of Canada unveiling a new $50 bill that showcases the five women (2004).” (6 ABHER) In terms of the future, Canadian women still have a very long way to go. They have established respect for themselves, but still have many more things they need to be able to achieve in order for them to be considered equal to men, and share the same privileges.“The visual of a woman running, whether it’s for vice president or president,

Over the course of history, women have fought and struggled to gain independence and rights for themselves. Starting all the way back at the beginning of time it has seemed to be that men have always been more superior than women. This co-existing issue has made women bundle down to the bottom of the “social ladder” which refrained them from freedom. Beginning back in the early 1800’s before laws and amendments were made women had close to no rights or freedoms. As the 1800’s went on several movements and marches started to happen as change did as well.

Since the first settlers voyaged from Europe to Canada and started building the foundations of our Canadian society, women have always been there: as the mother, the

The women 's suffrage movement, the time when women fought for their rights, began in the year 1848 and continued on all the way through the 1860s. Although women in the new republic had important roles in the family, the house, and other obligations, they were excluded from most rights. These rights included political and legal rights. Due to their gender, they have been held back because they did not have as much opportunities as the men did. The new republic made alterations in the roles of women by disparaging them in society. During this era, men received a higher status than women. Because women were forced to follow laws without being allowed to state their opinions, they tried to resist laws, fight for their freedom and strive to gain equality with men. This leads to feminism, the belief in political, social, and economic equality between men and women. It is the feminist efforts that have successfully tried to give rights that men had, to women who have been denied those rights. Upon the deprivation of those rights, the Seneca Falls convention and the Declaration of Sentiments helped women gain the privileges and opportunities to accomplish the task of equality that they have been striving for.

Families were worried that if their child was exposed to homosexuality, or were themselves gay, that their morals would be tarnished and they would embark towards promiscuous behaviour. Books were given to teens providing advice on how to reach “normality”. They were trying to scare kids into believing that heterosexuality was the only option and anything otherwise was not normal. They also wanted to guilt the children into believing that being gay would not only ostracize yourself, but would also shame your family. Families would tell their children that they needed to be heterosexual to defend Canada. They would also use examples from Canadian society as per what would happen if they did end up gay. Examples like how the

Through the Contemporary Women’s Issues in Canada course, various topics related to gender inequality were discussed. Due to a long history, of sexism and misogyny in many aspects of Canadian society, outdated behaviours and thoughts have prevailed in many aspects of society. Three main topics that are central to achieving gender equality are gendered violence, gender roles and socialization, and child care.

Gender inequality has been a long part of Canada’s history with men being the dominant decision makers. Women have had to fight long hard battles and overcome numerous obstacles to prove themselves and demonstrate that they are equal to men and not inferior. Over the course of a century women have achieved suffrage and have become increasingly visible in the political and economic sectors. Despite all the achievements women have made barriers remain in effect leaving women at a social, economic and political disadvantage even in the twenty-first century. The primary obstacles in achieving gender equality are the noticeable absence of women in authoritative economic and political positions, unfair social stereotypes that are still

The first stand of Feminism in Canada occured in the late 19th century. The act was mainly focused on increasing Women’s role in public life with essential goals concluding of Women’s suffrage, an increase in property rights and a definite increase for accessing education. In 1916, the Women in Manitoba were actually the first to gain the right to vote officially. “Women's Rights are Human Rights. Equality rights are of particular importance, given the unequal treatment women have experienced in Canada.

The role of public education in the advancement of women’s rights and ideas within Canada is incredibly influential. Contemporary public education brings together the guidance and wisdom of instructors with the modern ideology of Canadian youth to create a hotbed of political discussion. With the guidance of a feminist teacher, a classroom can be transformed into a politically savvy force, pushing for the progression of women within Canadian society. Through my studies and volunteer activities, I have and will continue to influence generations of learners in Canada to think critically about the state of women’s rights, and to contribute to feminist progress within our society.

Feminist movements have fought for women’s rights including suffrage rights, right for fair wage, right to work, hold a public office, own property, education, equal rights in marriages among other rights (Ryan, 2013).