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Outline: Men Who Have Fought for the Rights of Women in Canada

Introduction

I. Shakespeares Sister, from A Room of Ones Own by Virginia Wolf argues that the

Elizabethan society, like all traditional societies, limited womens participation in

education, art, and career life.

A. Wolf argues uses the example of William Shakespeares sister to show that if she

existed and had the same literary talent, intellectual and creative abilities like his

brother Shakespeare, the social and cultural practices of the time could not have

allowed her the freedom to write like Shakespeare, or rise to the level of her

brothers fame (Wolf 271).

B. The Elizabethan society, Wolf laments, denied women a room of their own,

which is a metaphorical reference to privacy, freedom to pursue ones interests,

leisure time, and recognition for ones efforts.

C. In Shakespeares era, women were condemned to early marriages and domestic

work, which allowed them little time to engage in activities such as writing. This

essay outline highlights male individuals who have contributed to increasing

womens space in public life by promoting the rights of women in education,

career and politics.

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II. Thesis: Lester Bowles Pearson, Canadas 14th Prime Minister, politically contributed

to gender equality in Canada by commissioning The Royal Commission on the Status

of Women in Canada (1967), whose recommendations paved the way for more

educational and training opportunities for women and prohibition of gender-based

discrimination in the job market (Williams 725).

III. Lester Bowles "Mike" Pearson (23 April 1897 27 December 1972) was a Canadian

scholar, diplomat and statesman who, during his reign as the 14th Prime Minister from

1963 to 1968, initiated social and political reforms that expanded the rights of

Canadian women in all aspects of the Canadian society (Pearson, 1972).

A. He commissioned the formation of the Royal Commission on the Status of

Women in Canada

B. The commission examined the status of women in Canada with respect to access

to educational and career opportunities, salary earnings in comparison with men

in similar jobs, and access to other job-related benefits and privileges such as

maternity leaves and incentives (Williams 725).

IV. The Commissions findings revealed several aspects of discrimination against women

in the job market, education, and politics. For instance, the commission discovered

that:

A. In 1970, the percentage of Canadian women holding managerial positions was

less than 4% (Williams 725).

B. In 8 of the 10 Canadian provinces that had equal pay laws, womens earnings

were still lower than those of men within the same job group or doing the same

work.
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C. In politics, women were unequally represented in political positions, such as the

senate.

D. Women accounted for more than two thirds of welfare beneficiaries, suggesting

economic marginalization of women.

V. The commission completed its work in 1970, and made several recommendations

whose implementation greatly improved the social, economic and political status of

women in the Canadian society, creating more room for women in the public sphere,

thereby reversing the restrictions that were common in traditional societies (Wolf

271)

A. The commission recommended the prohibition of gender and marital status

considerations as grounds for employment discrimination.

B. Recommended offering more government-sponsored training and educational

opportunities to women. As a result of these measures, the number of women in

the Canadian workforce has risen drastically over the years (Wolff 2000).

C. Recommended training of women in career courses improved their ability to

compete with men in the job market, while prohibition of gender and marital

status discrimination leveled the playing ground for both women and women.

D. The commission recommended the naming of more judges by the federal

government and the appointment of more women to the senate until there was an

equitable balance between men and women in political representation (Lyle

1974). This policy has seen the rise in number of female political representatives,

making Canada one of the few countries with equitable gender representation in

politics.
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VI. Conclusion: Lester Bowles Pearson used his position as prime minister to initiate

social, political and educational reforms that have helped to expand Canadian

womens access to career opportunities as well as increased their representation in

politics.

Works Cited

Lyle, Cleverdon. Woman suffrage movement in Canada. Toronto : University of Toronto Press,

1974. Print.

Pearson, Lester. Mike : the memoirs of the Right Honourable Lester B. Pearson. Toronto :

University of Toronto Press, 1972. Print.

Williams, Toni. Re-forming "women's" truth: a critique of the report of the Royal Commission

on the Status of Women in Canada. Ottawa Law Review, vol. 22. no. 3 (1990), p. 725.

Wolf, Virginia. Shakespeares Sister. A Room of Ones Own. New York: Harcourt, 1929. Print

Wolff, Alice. The face of globalization: women working poor in Canada. Canadian Woman

Studies, vol. 20, no. 3(2000)