McClung, Roy nominated to appear on bank notes

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This article was published 01/05/2016 (3592 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A pair of women with strong Manitoba ties could be immortalized on a banknote in 2018.

An independent advisory council has selected author Gabrielle Roy and women’s activist Nellie McClung among a dozen women up for consideration by the Bank of Canada to appear on the next series of bank notes.

The move to include the first women on Canadian legal tender — besides Queen Elizabeth II — was prompted by Prime Minister Trudeau in March when he said it was long overdue for women to appear on Canadian banknotes. More than 450 women were nominated.

Roy, a French Canadian who was born in St. Boniface and grew up in poverty in Manitoba, is considered one of the great contemporary writers on the human condition. She received some of literary’s highest honours, including the Governor General’s Award, the Prix Duvernay and the Prix David. She died in 1983 at the age of 74 in Quebec City.

McClung was born in Ontario in 1873 but moved to Manitoba in 1880. She ran as a Liberal on the issue of the vote for women in the 1914 and 1915 provincial elections. She helped organize the Women’s Political Equality League, which was devoted to women’s suffrage. Manitoba became the first province to grant women the right to vote in 1916. She was later elected to the Alberta legislature as a Liberal. She died in 1951.

The advisory council said it believed the nominees should have broken or overcome barriers, be inspirational, have made a significant change and have left a lasting legacy.

“We recognize that Canada is comprised of many different communities. The women who appear on our list should resonate with Canadians and reflect the diversity of Canada. Their achievements must be seen in the context of the time they lived,” it said.

Canadians will be surveyed about the 12 nominees. The advisory council will use that data, coupled with input from historians, to come up with a short list of three to five finalists. In accordance with the Bank of Canada Act, Finance Minister Bill Morneau will make the final decision.

The other 10 are:

❚ Pitseolak Ashoona (1904-1983): An Inuit artist recognized for establishing a modern Inuit art form that incorporated traditional knowledge.

❚ Emily Carr (1871-1945): A artist and writer famous for her landscapes of the Pacific coast.

❚ Thérèse Casgrain (1896-1981): She spearheaded the women’s suffrage movement in Quebec and became the first female leader of a political party.

❚ Viola Desmond (1914-1965): Often referred to as “Canada’s Rosa Parks,” Desmond took on racial segregation at a movie theatre in Nova Scotia.

❚ Lotta Hitschmanova (1909-1990): She co-founded the Unitarian Service Committee of Canada which sent aid to Europe during the Second World War.

❚ E. Pauline Johnson (1861-1913): A poet and writer whose work reflected English and Mohawk traditions.

❚ Elizabeth (Elsie) MacGill (1905-1980): She became the world’s first female aircraft designer and worked as an aeronautical engineer during the Second World War.

❚ Lucy Maud Montgomery (1874-1942): The PEI author made “Anne of Green Gables” a staple on bookshelves across Canada.

❚ Fanny (Bobbie) Rosenfeld (1905-1969): A gold medalist in the relay and a silver medalist in the 100-metre dash at the 1928 Olympics.

❚ Idola Saint-Jean (1880-1945): A Quebec journalist and educator who fought for women’s right to vote in Quebec.

geoff.kirbyson@freepress.mb.ca