Women in Canadian History Education Guide

Request for assistance fro m Mrs. Tho mas Hodgins to Pri me Minister R. B. Bennett, Septe mber 28,1933 (courtesy Library and Archives

Canada/ Micro fil m reel M-1321/396173-396182).

Readletters written duringthe Great Depressionto understand wo men’s beliefs, attitudes, and perspectives on what was happening to the m, their fa milies, Canada, and the world. Canadians were hit hard bythe Great Depression ofthe1930s.In di flcult ti mes, many wo men needed to take on paid work, while still being ex pected to care for their fa milies. Many struggled to kee p fa miliesfed and clothed, barely ableto cover basicliving expenses. Une mploy ment, destitution, and violence were widespread. Not only werethey oftenthelo west paid, but wo men were offered ali mited range ofjobs andtheir opportunities were generallyinferiorto men’s. Many struggling wo men(and men) addressedtheir concerns, anger, and despair by writing to Pri me Minister R. B. Bennett. They told of co m monplacetragedy, and askedforrelief(a co m monter mfor social welfare), or helpin gettingjobs. So meti mesthey de manded his govern ment find solutions to the econo mic crisis. 1. Workingin s mall groups,read aletter written by a Canadian wo manto Pri me Minister Bennettinthe Wo meninthe Great Depression Worksheet , available ontheEducation Portal. What doesitreveal aboutthei mpact ofthe Depression? 2. Usingthisletter and The Canadian Encyclopedia arti cl e Gr e at Depression , co mplete each step of pri mary source analysis with thePri mary Source Pyra mid ,located ontheEducation Portal.

MODIFICATION: FOCUS ON ONE OF THE LETTER WRITERS. WRITE A DIARY ENTRY FROM HER PERSPECTIVE THAT OUTLINES HER DAY-TO-DAY EXPERIENCES. BASE YOUR ENTRY ON HISTORICAL EVIDENCE FROM YOUR RESEARCH ABOUT WOMEN’S LIVES DURING THE GREAT DEPRESSION.

Hunger March duringthe Great Depression, Ed monton,1932 (courtesy Provincial Archives of Alberta/Roy Berlando/A9214).

PART A: 1. As a class, establishfourto six criteriato deter mineif a person should be co m me morated, andifthey are controversial, ho wto co m me morate the m. Consider the political and social context ofthe historical figuresinvolved. What shapedtheir beliefs and actions? Were other choices available? What are the bene fits and the dangers ofi mposingtoday’s standards as wejudge public ffigures fro m the past? PART B: 1. Workingindividually,read E u g e ni c s o n The Canadian Encyclopedia . 2. Choose one of the Fa mous Five to research, and read the corresponding Canadian Encyclopedia article:Nellie Mc Clung , Henrietta Muir Ed wards ,Louise Mc Kinney,E mily Murphy, orIrene Parlby. Teachers, make sure each wo manisrepresented. 3. Co mpletethe 5 Wsfor your choice: Whois she? What did she do? When and where was she active? Why was shei mportant? Ans wers can focus on p ositive or negative contributi ons. N ote which s ocial and econ o mic grou ps these wo men ca me fro m, and why thisisi mportant. 4. Record beliefs, actions, or opinions that might be considered controversial today, and consider ho w this affects your understanding.

5. Usingthe criteria you createdin Part A, deter mine whether she should be co m me morated, and ho w. 6. Write a persuasiveletterthatincorporates yourresearch and includes both sides ofthe debate.It couldtakethefor m of: • alettertotoday’s Govern ment of Canada arguingto keep or re move the statue of the Fa mous Five fro m Parlia ment Hill; • aletterto a school boardthat has a school na medfor Nellie Mc Clung, defending or objecting to the na me; • alettertothe City of Ed monton, which has parks na med after each ofthe Fa mous Five, arguingthatitrena me or preserve one of the parks; • alettertothe Govern ment of Canada defending or opposingthe “honorary senator” status giventothe Fa mous Fivein 2009. Extension: Research and discuss other exa mples of controversial figures and their me morialization across North A merica with your cl a s s. MODIFICATION: COMPLETE A T-CHART WITH POSITIVE CONTRIBUTIONS ON THE LEFT AND NEGATIVE CONTRIBUTIONS ON THE RIGHT. WRITE AN EXIT SLIP ANS WERING THE QUESTION “HO W SHOULD WE COMMEMORATE PEOPLE WHOSE POLITICS ARE UNACCEPTABLE BY TODAY’S STANDARDS?”

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