In continued celebration of Women History month, AWL recognizes the Persons Day. In 1929, the Supreme Court of Canada in Edwards v Canada ruled that women met the legal definition of a person. Also known as the Persons Case, this case allowed some women to hold public office and paved the way for generations of women leaders to come. However, racialized, indigenous and women of Asian heritage continued to be barred from public office. Almost 25 years after the Persons Case, Violet King Henry became the first Black women to become a lawyer in Canada. Violet King Henry grew up in Calgary, she attended Crescent Heights High School and obtained her law degree from University of Alberta.
