TWO ACTIVISTS, A POET, AN ENGINEER AND AN ATHLETE ARE ON THE LIST OF WOMEN WHOSE IMAGE COULD APPEAR ON THE NEXT NEW SERIES OF CANADIAN BANKNOTES. WHO ARE THE WOMEN WHO COULD FIT THE BILL?
Two activists, a poet, an engineer and an athlete are on the short list of five women whose image could appear on the next series of Canadian banknotes due out in 2018. The Bank of Canada, which released the list ahead of an announcement on Dec. 8 when the winner will be chosen, said the names were selected from 461 eligible nominees submitted by Canadians. The central bank says that in compiling the short list the council agreed the final five best articulated the criteria including having broken or overcome barriers, making a significant change, leaving a lasting legacy and being inspirational.
VIOLA DESMOND 1914-1965 — Activist
A businesswoman turned civil libertarian, Viola Desmond built a business as a beautician and, through her beauty school, was a mentor to young black women in Nova Scotia. She is best known for her courageous refusal, in 1946, to accept racial discrimination by sitting in a whites-only section of a New Glasgow movie theatre. Desmond was arrested and fined for “attempting to defraud the provincial government” of the one-cent difference between the balcony seats (the “black section”) and the seats on the main floor.
E. PAULINE JOHNSON (TEKAHIONWAKE) 1861-1913 — Poet
The daughter of a Mohawk chief and an Englishwoman, E. Pauline Johnson is best known for the poetry she wrote celebrating her Aboriginal heritage. During her career, Johnson adopted her Aboriginal grandfather’s name, Tekahionwake, meaning “double wampum.” Between 1892 and 1910, Johnson undertook a series of speaking tours in Canada, the United States and England and travelled across Canada giving poetry readings in remote settlements. Throughout her travels Johnson’s recitations of patriotic poems and short stories featuring Canadian culture made her a popular ambassador for Canada.
ELIZABETH (ELSIE) MACGILL 1905-1980 — Engineer
Elizabeth MacGill was the first woman in Canada to receive a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering (University of Toronto, 1927) and a master’s degree in aeronautical engineering (University of Michigan, 1929). She was the first female aircraft designer in the world and is perhaps best known as “Queen of the Hurricanes” for her work on the Hawker Hurricane fighter planes that were used during the Second World War and were instrumental in the Battle of Britain. She was president of the Canadian Federation of Business and Professional Women (1962-64) and was a member of the Royal Commission on the Status of Women.
FANNY (BOBBIE) ROSENFELD 1904-1969 — Athlete
A track-and-field athlete, Fanny Rosenfeld held Canadian records in the running and standing broad jump and in the discus. At the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics, she took the silver medal in the 100-metre dash and was lead runner for the women’s 4x100-metre relay team that won gold in a record time of 48.2 seconds. She was also joint holder of the 100-yard world record. Rosenfeld was voted Canada’s female athlete of the first half of the 20th century in 1950, and inducted to Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame in 1955. After arthritis forced her into retirement, Rosenfeld entered the world of journalism and for 20 years wrote a sports column in the Globe and Mail.
IDOLA SAINT-JEAN 1880-1945 — Suffragette and Activist
An actress, teacher and author, Idola Saint-Jean is primarily known as a feminist and pioneer in the fight for suffrage in Quebec. She led the efforts to obtain the right for Quebec women to vote in provincial elections (which was realized nearly 20 years after it was granted for federal elections). Saint-Jean was also the first woman from Quebec to run as a candidate in a federal election. Since 1991, the Fédération des femmes du Québec has given the Prix Idola St-Jean to a woman or group of women who have improved the status of women and advanced the cause of feminism in Quebec.