Emily Murphy Was Progressive for Her Time. So Was Her Racism.

Quiet Canines Podcast · Sep 20, 2026 · 3m

At the beginning of the 20th century, one of the most prominent female writers and social activists of the time was Emily Murphy. She wrote magazine articles and books under the pen name of Janey Canuck. Her book Janey Canuck in the West was very popular.

Murphy would go on to become a suffragette, one of the Famous Five who secured the right for women to be considered “persons” under the law.

Well, some women, but not Indigenous women.

They were left out of the efforts by the Famous Five, women who are lauded all over Canada now as fighters for equality. There is a statue of the Five on…