Cairine Wilson

Politician

• Born: February 4, 1885
• Birthplace: Montreal, Quebec
• Died: March 3, 1962
• Place of death: Ottawa, Ontario

Contribution: Cairine Wilson, a social worker, politician, and mother, was the first woman senator in Canadian history. During more than thirty-two years in public service, Wilson was chairperson and member of numerous committees in the Canadian Parliament. In 1949, Wilson became the first Canadian woman delegate to the United Nations General Assembly.

Early Life and Education

Cairine Reay Mackay Wilson was born February 4, 1885, in Montreal, Quebec. Wilson’s father, Robert Mackay, was a Liberal Party senator, and her mother, Jane Mackay, was a homemaker. The eighth child in the family, Wilson often heard politics being discussed at home and would accompany her father when he went to Ottawa, the capital, to take care of political matters. Like other women of her time, she did not attend university.

Political Career

Canadian Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King appointed Wilson to the Senate in 1930, where she was responsible for the Rockcliffe, Ontario, division. Her appointment was a significant event, occurring barely four months after Canada’s highest court determined that women could be considered eligible for participation in the Canadian Senate. Five women, known as the Famous Five, had argued that women should be considered eligible for political office.

Wilson was a member of the Liberal Party throughout her time in office. She served as chairperson of the Standing Committee on Immigration and Labour for approximately ten years. Wilson also served as a member of other standing committees, including those on banking and commerce, public health and welfare, external relations, and public buildings and grounds. Wilson also worked with a number of joint committees, most notably the Standing Joint Committee on the Library of Parliament.

A longtime supporter of social causes, Wilson fought for the rights of refugees from 1938 to 1948 when she served as chairperson of the Canadian National Committee on Refugees. She was also known for protesting against anti-Semitism. In 1949, Wilson became the first Canadian woman delegate appointed to the United Nations General Assembly; in 1955, she became the first woman to serve as deputy speaker of the Canadian Senate.

Wilson was awarded two honorary degrees and was given the French Cross of the Knight of the Legion of Honour in 1950 for her work with child refugees. She would have accepted the B’nai B’rith Woman of the Year award in 1960, but was unable to travel to Toronto because of poor health. Additional honors included the Mother of the Year award by the American Mothers Committee of New York.

Personal Life

Wilson was married in 1909 to Canadian member of Parliament Norman Frank Wilson. The couple had eight children. Wilson died on March 3, 1962, in Ottawa, Ontario. She was still a senator at the time of her death.

Bibliography

Carstairs, Sharon, and Tim Higgins. Dancing Backwards: A Social History of Canadian Women in Politics. Winnipeg: Heartland, 2004. Print.

Iacovetta, Franca. “A Respectable Feminist: The Political Career of Senator Cairine Wilson 1921–1962.” Beyond the Vote: Canadian Women and Politics. Ed. Linda Kealey and Joan Sangster. 1989. Toronto: U of Toronto P, 2009. 63–85. Print.

Knowles, Valerie. “First Lady of the Red Chamber.” Beaver 72.5 (1992): 16. Print.

Knowles, Valerie. First Person: A Biography of Cairine Wilson, Canada’s First Woman Senator. 1988. Toronto: Dundurn, 2009. Print.

“Wilson, the Hon. Cairine Reay.” Parliament of Canada. Library of Parliament, n.d. Web. 31 July 2013.

“Women in the Senate: The ‘Persons’ Case.” Senate of Canada Fact Sheet. Senate of Canada, n.d. Web. 31 July 2013.