The Women's Protective League of Dawson is now circulating a petition
which, when a sufficient number of signatures have been secured, will be forwarded to Ottawa, praying for woman suffrage in Yukon. It is proposed by the members of the Women's
Protective League to fully cover the entire field to be affeeted by the amendments asked to the "Dominion Election Act" and the "Yukon Election Act," and they profess themselves confident of eventually securing the legislation sought. The petition follows:
We, the undersigned residents of the Yukon Territory, firmly believe that
the best interests of our territory would be served if women were placed on the same political footing as men. And in proof thereof we set forth the following facts for your worthy consideration:
Whereas, Owing to the large number of foreign born men residing in Yukon,
and naturalized under an Act which up to a very recent period has been far too lax, the illiterate alien vote has always had too great an influence in our elections; and,
Whereas, The lack of a fair knowledge of the English language preventing a large majority of the alien voters from understanding our laws and institutions, their vote is practically at the mercy of certain interests which are not the best interests of the territory; and,
Whereas, The non-English-speaking electorate consists mostly of unmarried
men, and the nine hundred women in the Territory are mostly British or American born and speak the English language, we believe the extension of the franchise to the women of Yukon would offset and overcome the deteriorating effect of an illiterate foreign vote;
and,
Whereas, This evil we are seeking to overcome has increased at an alarming rate since the outbreak of the war, owing to the fact that nearly four hundred of our men have gone to the front, thereby reducing the voters' list from seventeen to thirteen hundred approximately; and,
Whereas, An election held in Yukon two months ago polled a vote of over
seventeen hundred, we can readily see how the places of our own men have been filled at the polls with aliens, whose vote has so far proved detrimental to the industrial and social welfare of the Yukon Territory; and,
Whereas, That from Manitoba to British Columbia, and from the Siberian
boundary line to California the nine hundred women in the Yukon Territory are the only disfranchised women in this vast portion of the North American continent;
Therefore, we ask the members of the house of commons: Is it not reasonable for us to request that the full privileges of the franchise be granted to the women of the Yukon Territory, and given speedily in order that they may assist in the reconstructive period after the war?
Therefore, in conclusion, we respectfully request that amendments be passed at the present session eliminating the word "Male" and "Woman" in their present significance from the "Dominion Election Act," and the "Yukon Election Act," as we understand that such legislation by your honorable assembly will not only give the women of the Yukon Territory the same political rights as the men, but will lift from the mothers, wives and daughters of men the shame and degradation of being legally classed with idiots and criminals.
