First lady of currency

Photo: The Canadian Press

Viola Desmond, often described as Canada's Rosa Parks for her 1946 decision to sit in a whites-only section of a Nova Scotia movie theatre, will be the first woman to be celebrated on the face of a Canadian banknote.

Finance Minister Bill Morneau says Desmond will grace the front of the $10 bill when the next series goes into circulation in 2018.

"Today is about recognizing the incalculable contribution that all women have had and continue to have in shaping Canada’s story. Viola Desmond’s own story reminds all of us that big change can start with moments of dignity and bravery," Morneau told a news conference in Gatineau, Que.

"She represents courage, strength and determination—qualities we should all aspire to every day."

Desmond’s sister Wanda Robson, who was instrumental in making Desmond's story more widely known, was on hand for the announcement.

"It’s a big day to have a woman on a bank note, but it’s an especially big day to have your big sister on a bank note," she said. "Our family is extremely proud and honoured."

Others on the short list were poet E. Pauline Johnson; Elsie MacGill, who received an electrical engineering degree from the University of Toronto in 1927; Quebec suffragette Idola Saint-Jean; and 1928 Olympic medallist Fanny Rosenfeld, a track and field athlete.

There were more than 26,000 submissions from the public, which was later whittled down to 461 eligible nominees who had Canadian citizenship and had been dead for at least 25 years.