Standing alone beside an empty chair, Emily Murphy invites anyone to accompany her while she stares at a newspaper. The headline reads “Women are Persons.” This indicates the enormous contribution that she, along with four other women, had on the court decision that women are considered to be persons under the law.
Dressed in a long dress with a tie around her neck, Murphy stands tall, motioning towards Nellie McClung, as she invites people to join her in her fight for inclusion.
Tourists can interact with the monument, by having a cup of tea with McKinney or Edwards, or they can choose to sit in a chair right beside Murphy herself. The larger-than-life size statue was designed by Barbara Paterson and was unveiled in Ottawa at a ceremony in October 2000.
Although the statue is located in Ottawa, a replica of the Famous Five statue can also be found in downtown Calgary, as well as across Canada on the back of the $50 bill.
Born in 1868, Murphy was the first female judge in the British Empire. Murphy was an influential woman in helping to pass the Dower Act and the Married Women’s Protection Act. In 1919, her name was submitted by women’s organizations across Canada to be named as a candidate for the Senate.
She was repeatedly told she could not apply for the position because as a woman, she was not considered a “person” under the British North America Act.
Murphy was committed to her beliefs and she chose four other women to help present the case to the Supreme Court of Canada. In 1928, they were told that a woman is not considered a person.
However, Murphy and the Famous Five pressed on. They appealed the courts’ decision to the Privy Council of England, where the court then ruled them persons. This was a huge accomplishment for women’s rights.