The Visitors — Wyman, Marlena

Many women’s associations carried out a heavy load of charitable work long before governments took this on.The Visiting and Relief Committee of the Edmonton Chapter of the Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire (IODE)was started to help some of the women and families of the soldiers who were serving overseas in the First World War.

They carried out good works such as providing furniture, clothing, coal for heating, and short term loans.On several occasions it is mentioned that the Visitors took children of sick or deceased mothers into their own homes.

Sadly, not all of the work of these women’s organizations was of a positive nature.The mission of some early women’s organizations was to support and promote the British Empire overseas.They were on the forefront of initiatives such as banning black immigration, advocating for eugenics, and the intrusive assimilation of indigenous peoples. Paradoxically, women’s groups who were simultaneously fighting for women’s rights, also led the charge for eugenics.

The negative parts of our history must be unearthed and remembered along with the good. Destroying and burying what we are ashamed of and would rather not remember means that we forget about the harm that was done and that harm can be repeated. Telling both sides of the story is an opportunity for learning and doing better.

Although it is difficult to understand some of the thinking of the past, we are sadly not always as advanced in our present-day attitudes as we may think. Analogous forms of influence come into play for us every day. History lays the foundation for critical thinking, moral sense, and vigilance so that we can continue to protect human rights and freedoms

Painting inspired by the minutes of women’s associations at the Provincial Archives of Alberta #1974.1