Source:
Decision of the Lords or the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, October 18, 1929.

Ref.:
National Archives of Canada
RG 13, vol. 2525, file C1044 (1)

Author:
The Lords of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London, England

Subject:
The Famous 5's appeal to the Privy Council in London (England) led to a favourable ruling. According to the highest legal body in the British Empire, the British North America Act considers the word 'person' to include women, and women are eligible to become members of the Senate of Canada (thus answering favourably the Famous 5's initial question).

Questions:

1) What type of source is this? In what ways is it similar and different to the letters you have examined? (Hint - Who produced it? Why? For what audience was it produced?

2) How are the historical context and perspective different or similar to your own? (Hint - How were ther rights of woment different then? Would a legal appeal today still need Britain to make the final decision?)

3) What is the main argument of the source? How is this argument similar to any of the other souces? What would account for such similarities.

Final Writing Activity:

Write a news article about the Privy Council ruling and the Famous Five. Pretend you are a newspaper writer from 1929 and speculate on what this ruling could mean for women in Canada. Be sure to use the details and perspective of the sources you have examined to help you write.