Standing on New Ground: Women in Alberta

Terry A. Crowley is an associate professor of history at the University
of Guelph and author of Agnes Macphail and the Politics of Equality.

There is a conceit in the title of this book that is carried through
into its execution. Was Alberta “new ground” any more than other
parts of the West except in the narrow view of its white settlers?

The feminism that has inspired this book appears to have picked up
ancient prejudices in order to replicate them. Aboriginal women are
almost totally excluded except for a few passing references in the
book’s historiographical essay. Race, work-related questions, and the
importance of ethnicity get short shrift as well. Most of the 10
selections deal with white middle-class women, and three concern the
University of Alberta since 1960. Rather than tackle the challenging
question of whether ethnicity was more formative than gender among
Ukrainian women during the early settlement years, one essay examines
Protestant missionary attempts to convert and assimilate ethnic
minorities between 1904 and 1940.

Other essays deal with similarly staid and conventional topics, such as
the experiences of rural white women in the Women’s Institutes,
photographs of farm life, and the evolution of cowgirl dress. Linda
Trimble’s study of Alberta’s female legislators between 1972 and
1991 is exceptional for its methodology and its conclusions. In contrast
to many scholars, Trimble highlights the importance of Opposition women
legislators in addressing feminist issues, although she does not
adequately consider the importance of their affiliations with the New
Democratic and Liberal parties. This essay suggests that women make a
greater contribution to the public agenda than this book does to
women’s studies.