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To Be Equals in Our Own Country: Women and the Vote in Quebec
“When the history of suffrage is written, the role played by our politicians will cut a sad figure beside that of the women they insulted.” Speaking in 1935, feminist Idola Saint-Jean captured the bitter nature of Quebec women’s fight for enfranchisement, as religious authorities weighed what they stood to gain or lose and politicians showed open disdain during debates in the Legislative Assembly.
Most Canadian women had gained the right to vote by the end of the First World War, but women in Quebec had to wait until 1940 or longer to cast a ballot in their own province. This passionate yet even-handed account retraces the journey from the infancy of democracy in Lower Canada to the Women’s Suffrage Act in 1940 and beyond. It examines the influence of the Quebec national question on women’s struggle for the right to vote, and looks beyond national borders to compare their efforts with those in Europe and the United States.
This astute exploration of resistance and momentum toward women’s suffrage in Quebec treats enfranchisement – and the legal, social, and economic rights that stem from it – as a fundamental question of human rights.
To Be Equals in Our Own Country is the third volume in a seven-part series on the history of the vote in Canada. The Women’s Suffrage and the Struggle for Democracy series serves as a timely reminder not to take political rights for granted.
As the first overview of developments leading to Quebec women’s suffrage, this book will have broad appeal to Canadian readers interested in their own history, as well as to students and scholars of women’s history and political history.
Most Canadian women had gained the right to vote by the end of the First World War, but women in Quebec had to wait until 1940 or longer to cast a ballot in their own province. This passionate yet even-handed account retraces the journey from the infancy of democracy in Lower Canada to the Women’s Suffrage Act in 1940 and beyond. It examines the influence of the Quebec national question on women’s struggle for the right to vote, and looks beyond national borders to compare their efforts with those in Europe and the United States.
This astute exploration of resistance and momentum toward women’s suffrage in Quebec treats enfranchisement – and the legal, social, and economic rights that stem from it – as a fundamental question of human rights.
To Be Equals in Our Own Country is the third volume in a seven-part series on the history of the vote in Canada. The Women’s Suffrage and the Struggle for Democracy series serves as a timely reminder not to take political rights for granted.
As the first overview of developments leading to Quebec women’s suffrage, this book will have broad appeal to Canadian readers interested in their own history, as well as to students and scholars of women’s history and political history.
224 pages, Hardcover
First published March 4, 2019
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December 6, 2022
To Be Equals: Thoughts
To Be Equals in Our Own Country: Women and the Vote in Quebec by Denyse Baillargeon and translated by Käthe Roth (Translator)
This is a recounting of something that to many might seem like ancient history. However, if you have a grandmother, she may have lived though this. Women received the vote (provincially) in Quebec only in 1940. Their first opportunity to exercise it was not until 1944. Long ago? No so long.
At the very beginning of this summer American women lost their ability to be masters of their own bodies. Their health care and well being became subject to a state-by-state rulings. Protecting fetuses was a cause celebre for decades for those that were advocating for the overruling of Roe v. Wade. Pro-Life became their catch phrase.
Pro-Birth might have been more accurate. The policies and political positions of these advocates was very much laissez-faire once there was a birth. In other words, mothers and their newborn babies are on their own. My judicial ‘rocket-scientist’ suggested that America needed more babies for adoption, anyway, so no biggie.
Really?
I started on a quest to discover how Women gained the vote – only a little over a hundred years ago – in the USA, most of Canada and the UK, but not in many other places.
How did they (women) convince their men-folk?
Could some of these arguments and tactics be used to advocate for better health care, and true maternal protection in America, in particular, but in other places as well?
That led me to start to do some reading, which included To Be Equals in Our Own Country by Denyse Baillargeon. It was not for me a brilliant book, as it focused too much on facts and not enough on stories. It did however share some brilliant insights, tidbits, and historical perspectives. Such as a reminder that it is not yet a hundred years that women were recognized as ‘persons’ in this country. “In fact, women had become eligible for senate appointments in 1929, when the Privy Council in London ruled that they were ‘persons,’ just like men.”
Was it a fun read? Not really, but it shows the importance of history in our school systems. Perhaps, more correctly the foolish repetition of errors when we ignore our history, or should I say, out histories.
“When the history of suffrage is written, the role played by our politicians will cut a sad figure beside that of the women they insulted.” Idola Saint-Jean
As Therese Casgrain explained, “For women the right to vote (is) the only logical means compatible with our political system to ensure them the sanction that they must have at their disposal to be recognized and to maintain their rights.”
Yet, women do vote and they sometimes vote against their interests. Amazing? Indeed! But that just shows that men are not the only gullible ones.
It was hoped that women, “would also force the government to adopt laws that were fairer or more sensitive to the needs of women and of the most vulnerable – qualities that a number of pro-suffrage assembly members also evoked.”
One of those insights, that seems very Canadian, is that Mohawk law, was not based on blood, but on membership to the tribe. That is an important concept for the multi ethnic societies in which much of the West finds itself. Something to think about.
Lino Matteo ©™
Twitter @Lino_Matteo
https://linomatteo.wordpress.com/2022...
To Be Equals in Our Own Country: Women and the Vote in Quebec by Denyse Baillargeon and translated by Käthe Roth (Translator)
This is a recounting of something that to many might seem like ancient history. However, if you have a grandmother, she may have lived though this. Women received the vote (provincially) in Quebec only in 1940. Their first opportunity to exercise it was not until 1944. Long ago? No so long.
At the very beginning of this summer American women lost their ability to be masters of their own bodies. Their health care and well being became subject to a state-by-state rulings. Protecting fetuses was a cause celebre for decades for those that were advocating for the overruling of Roe v. Wade. Pro-Life became their catch phrase.
Pro-Birth might have been more accurate. The policies and political positions of these advocates was very much laissez-faire once there was a birth. In other words, mothers and their newborn babies are on their own. My judicial ‘rocket-scientist’ suggested that America needed more babies for adoption, anyway, so no biggie.
Really?
I started on a quest to discover how Women gained the vote – only a little over a hundred years ago – in the USA, most of Canada and the UK, but not in many other places.
How did they (women) convince their men-folk?
Could some of these arguments and tactics be used to advocate for better health care, and true maternal protection in America, in particular, but in other places as well?
That led me to start to do some reading, which included To Be Equals in Our Own Country by Denyse Baillargeon. It was not for me a brilliant book, as it focused too much on facts and not enough on stories. It did however share some brilliant insights, tidbits, and historical perspectives. Such as a reminder that it is not yet a hundred years that women were recognized as ‘persons’ in this country. “In fact, women had become eligible for senate appointments in 1929, when the Privy Council in London ruled that they were ‘persons,’ just like men.”
Was it a fun read? Not really, but it shows the importance of history in our school systems. Perhaps, more correctly the foolish repetition of errors when we ignore our history, or should I say, out histories.
“When the history of suffrage is written, the role played by our politicians will cut a sad figure beside that of the women they insulted.” Idola Saint-Jean
As Therese Casgrain explained, “For women the right to vote (is) the only logical means compatible with our political system to ensure them the sanction that they must have at their disposal to be recognized and to maintain their rights.”
Yet, women do vote and they sometimes vote against their interests. Amazing? Indeed! But that just shows that men are not the only gullible ones.
It was hoped that women, “would also force the government to adopt laws that were fairer or more sensitive to the needs of women and of the most vulnerable – qualities that a number of pro-suffrage assembly members also evoked.”
One of those insights, that seems very Canadian, is that Mohawk law, was not based on blood, but on membership to the tribe. That is an important concept for the multi ethnic societies in which much of the West finds itself. Something to think about.
Lino Matteo ©™
Twitter @Lino_Matteo
https://linomatteo.wordpress.com/2022...
March 7, 2019
C'est parfait!!! L'histoire du suffrage parle amplement de la période où les femmes propriétaires, au Québec, pouvaient voter, comment ce droit leur a été enlevé par le gouvernement des patriotes, les discours misogynes ou essentialistes qui ont été utilisés pour ce faire et l'absence de commentaires connus sur le sujet par les femmes.
L'autrice s'attarde, dans une deuxième partie à parler de l’essor des suffragistes (distinguées des suffragettes) au Québec vers la fin du XIXe siècle et début XXe et pas seulement à travers une histoire des grands personnages (Idola Saint-Jean, Thérèse Casgrain, Joséphine Marchand-Dandurand, etc.) a qui on octroiera des encadrés parfois ou des organisations, mais des revues, journaux, magazines, émissions radiophoniques, cours où les pro-suffrages et les antis donnaient leur opinion dans l'espace médiatique et parfois public. On s'attardera aussi aux différentes actions, des pétitions aux femmes sandwichs en passant par les visites à l'Assemblée provinciale. On y parlera du rôle de la religion catholique toujours très contre pour des raisons essentialistes et de soumission des femmes à un rôle de ménagère, etc. Bref, on discute en long et en large des différentes formes que l'action suffragiste prendra au Québec tout ça pendant qu'au niveau municipal et fédéral, le droit de vote est déjà acquis et les femmes y participent. J'ai d'ailleurs très apprécié cette histoire du droit de vote municipal et dans les écoles que je ne connaissais pas et qui furent parmi les premiers gains pour le suffrage!
Baillargeon s'attarde aussi a mentionné en quoi le droit de vote en 1940 n'a été accordé qu'à certaines femmes, les femmes asiatiques et les autochtones ne l'obtiendront que beaucoup plus tard et l'essayiste détaille cette lutte (et les changements à la loi sur les Indiens qui sous-tendaient le tout) au même titre que la lutte pour le suffrage des Québécoises non-autochtones (ou celles qui avaient perdue ce statut avec la loi sur les Indiens). Un encadré est aussi réservé à Mary Two-Axe Earley.
Toutefois, même après toutes ses victoires, Denyse Baillargeon n'hésite pas à souligner comment la représentation des femmes à l'Assemblée n'a jamais été très forte jusqu'à tout tout récemment et mentionne notamment les discussions autour de la parité en politique qui ne font pas l'unanimité pour s'assurer d'une meilleure représentation des femmes dans les échelons politiques. L'essai détaille aussi l'importance d'avoir des femmes en politiques (qu'elles se disent féministes ou non) et l'influence de ces dernières au sein de l'Assemblée.
J'essaie de lire tous les livres d'histoire des femmes, du féminisme au Québec (y compris les biographies sur les suffragistes) qui existent et j'ai été super agréablement surpris de ne pas cesser d'en apprendre sur le sujet et de ne connaître, au final, que très peu de chose sur cette histoire!! Définitivement un must donc!
L'autrice s'attarde, dans une deuxième partie à parler de l’essor des suffragistes (distinguées des suffragettes) au Québec vers la fin du XIXe siècle et début XXe et pas seulement à travers une histoire des grands personnages (Idola Saint-Jean, Thérèse Casgrain, Joséphine Marchand-Dandurand, etc.) a qui on octroiera des encadrés parfois ou des organisations, mais des revues, journaux, magazines, émissions radiophoniques, cours où les pro-suffrages et les antis donnaient leur opinion dans l'espace médiatique et parfois public. On s'attardera aussi aux différentes actions, des pétitions aux femmes sandwichs en passant par les visites à l'Assemblée provinciale. On y parlera du rôle de la religion catholique toujours très contre pour des raisons essentialistes et de soumission des femmes à un rôle de ménagère, etc. Bref, on discute en long et en large des différentes formes que l'action suffragiste prendra au Québec tout ça pendant qu'au niveau municipal et fédéral, le droit de vote est déjà acquis et les femmes y participent. J'ai d'ailleurs très apprécié cette histoire du droit de vote municipal et dans les écoles que je ne connaissais pas et qui furent parmi les premiers gains pour le suffrage!
Baillargeon s'attarde aussi a mentionné en quoi le droit de vote en 1940 n'a été accordé qu'à certaines femmes, les femmes asiatiques et les autochtones ne l'obtiendront que beaucoup plus tard et l'essayiste détaille cette lutte (et les changements à la loi sur les Indiens qui sous-tendaient le tout) au même titre que la lutte pour le suffrage des Québécoises non-autochtones (ou celles qui avaient perdue ce statut avec la loi sur les Indiens). Un encadré est aussi réservé à Mary Two-Axe Earley.
Toutefois, même après toutes ses victoires, Denyse Baillargeon n'hésite pas à souligner comment la représentation des femmes à l'Assemblée n'a jamais été très forte jusqu'à tout tout récemment et mentionne notamment les discussions autour de la parité en politique qui ne font pas l'unanimité pour s'assurer d'une meilleure représentation des femmes dans les échelons politiques. L'essai détaille aussi l'importance d'avoir des femmes en politiques (qu'elles se disent féministes ou non) et l'influence de ces dernières au sein de l'Assemblée.
J'essaie de lire tous les livres d'histoire des femmes, du féminisme au Québec (y compris les biographies sur les suffragistes) qui existent et j'ai été super agréablement surpris de ne pas cesser d'en apprendre sur le sujet et de ne connaître, au final, que très peu de chose sur cette histoire!! Définitivement un must donc!
October 23, 2024
(4.5/5)
I read this for a book review for class (in one sitting, but we're not going to talk about that), so I'm not going to get into my feelings too deep here so I do not tire myself of the topic before I even right the report! I did find this book to be very informative and without much bias: Baillargeon explores the history of suffrage from many angles, never once saying that the women who opposed were incorrect, dumb, or anything of the sort, nor did she paint the suffragettes in an exclusively positive light and claim they were the only ones who were right. she simply explored the history of it, how it came to fruition, and impacts afterwards. it does seem as if she agrees that it was a good thing but from a modern lens: she does not let it impact her research.
or, maybe I'm feeling overwhelmingly positive about this book because i voted literally two days ago—all thanks to suffragettes.
I read this for a book review for class (in one sitting, but we're not going to talk about that), so I'm not going to get into my feelings too deep here so I do not tire myself of the topic before I even right the report! I did find this book to be very informative and without much bias: Baillargeon explores the history of suffrage from many angles, never once saying that the women who opposed were incorrect, dumb, or anything of the sort, nor did she paint the suffragettes in an exclusively positive light and claim they were the only ones who were right. she simply explored the history of it, how it came to fruition, and impacts afterwards. it does seem as if she agrees that it was a good thing but from a modern lens: she does not let it impact her research.
or, maybe I'm feeling overwhelmingly positive about this book because i voted literally two days ago—all thanks to suffragettes.
June 9, 2019
Ce livre est un petit délice, super informatif et clair. La trame factuelle était facile à suivre et j’ai bien aimé l’emphase sur certaines personnalités importantes avec des extraits biographiques. J’ai presque honte de dire que je ne connaissais pas la plupart de ces femmes, alors qu’on parle encore de Papineau et Bourassa sans mentionner leur activisme anti-suffrage. La touche finale sur les autochtones était aussi bien appréciée. Je vais définitivement recommander ce livre à plusieurs!
Seule critique est que j’aurais rajouté un passage sur la perspective de la lutte pour le suffrage de d’autres groupes minoritaires comme les asiatiques (brièvement mentionnés) et les noirs.
Seule critique est que j’aurais rajouté un passage sur la perspective de la lutte pour le suffrage de d’autres groupes minoritaires comme les asiatiques (brièvement mentionnés) et les noirs.
August 16, 2020
Intéressant pour les aspects historique. Analyse politique qui laisse un peu à désirer (ex. ce n'est pas Pauline Marois qui a fait les CPE, mais plutôt le PQ qui a cédé après 20 ans de lutte des femmes de la classe ouvrière).
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews