It was not until 1964 that married women in Canada were allowed to open a bank account without obtaining their husband’s signature. In that same year, married women were also allowed to be jury members for the first time.
Banks were legally allowed to deny bank loans or mortgages to women, unless a man (her husband or father, usually) co-signed with her, until the early 1970s.
Prior to 1983, rape was considered an offence outside of marriage under Canadian law, meaning that a husband could not be charged with raping his wife. In 1982, when NDP MP Margaret Mitchell raised the issue of violence against women and demanded that the federal government take action to stop domestic violence, she was laughed at by (mostly male) MPs in the House of Commons.
Although the first birth control pills went on the market in 1960, they were illegal in Canada until 1969 if prescribed for birth control, although doctors were able to prescribe it for “therapeutic” reasons. When it was finally legalized, it was only for married women. Unmarried women could not legally get access to birth control pills in Canada until 1972.
Until the 1970s, businesses were allowed to have and enforce policies that meant women who got married could be fired. Until 1978, the Canada Labour Code allowed employers to lay off or fire women who became pregnant, and it wasn’t until 1984 that the CLC was amended to allow redress for victims of sexual harassment.
Those who pine for the “good old days” might want to do a little research and soul-searching, and ask themselves why they think we should turn the clock back.
It’s worth remembering that the period we’re living through right now, will, in a matter of years, be the “good old days” for someone else.
We need to do the best we can to make those days good now, for everyone, lest history find us wanting.