Pamela Kent
Democracy 250 - What is Democracy? It's one type of government - in a democratic society you get to vote and choose whom you want to lead and represent you. You normally have choices for whom you can vote for and whoever has the most votes wins and becomes the leader.
Democracy is also the opposite of Communism. In a Communist society you don't get to pick who represents you or who the leader is.
Nova Scotia wasn't always a Democratic province, but it was the first province in Canada to get Democracy and a responsible government. When the Town of Halifax was first founded in 1749 by Edward Cornwallis our form of government was Communism. Edward was told by the Lords of the Board of Trade and Plantations to get an assembly started in Halifax but throughout his three years in office he never did.
It wasn't until Charles Lawrence's second year in office that he started the assembly. But it was only because of the letter that he had received on February 7, 1758 from the Lords of the Board of Trade and Plantation giving him clear directions regarding the assembly, "it should be immediately carried into execution". About eight months later on October 2, 1758 the assembly of twenty-two men met for the first time. Even though Nova Scotians now had the right to vote many denied it. But not all Nova Scotians had the right to vote. Only white men who were members of the Church of England, older than twenty-one and owned property worth two pounds annually. But it wouldn't be until 1870 that the secret ballot was introduced, and it would also be ninety years after our Democratic government formed that we would get responsible government within Nova Scotia.
It wasn't until 1918 that white women over the age of 21 were eligible to vote federally and within our province. But the next election wasn't until 1920 so that was the first time they were allowed to vote. Women also weren't allowed to run to be in the Nova Scotia Legislature until 1949, five years after the Second World War.
In 1960 two major things happened within our government. All aboriginals were finally allowed to vote, two hundred and two years after our Democratic government was formed. Mrs. Gladys Porter was also the first female elected to the Nova Scotia Legislature but her first speech to the house wasn't until February 8, 1961.
Mr. Wayne Adams would be our first African Nova Scotian elected to the Nova Scotia Legislature in 1993, only fifteen years ago and two hundred thirty-five years after our Democratic government was formed. It wouldn't be for another five years that we would have our first black female in the Nova Scotia Legislature and that would be Yvonne Atwell.
We wouldn't get our first female lieutenant governor until 2000 when Myra Freeman became the first female and the first Jewish lieutenant governor. Our second female lieutenant governor would also be our first black lieutenant governor and Mayann Francis would hold those honours in 2006.
Yes, it took awhile to get females into our government and for them to get the right to vote but we were the first in many things, such as the first to get Democratic government and the first to get responsible government, which we also got without any bloodshed or deaths. It's something that we can be very proud of here in Nova Scotia.