A New Face for the Ten-Dollar Bill: The story of Viola Desmond

Canadian currency has changed a lot over the years. Our money has played host to images of iconic Canadian landscapes, birds of Canada and depictions of Canadian achievement in both the arts and the sciences. In all that time though, at least one thing has remained constant: The famous political faces that can be found on the front side of the bills. For example, Prime Minister Wilfred Laurier has been the face of the five-dollar bill since 1972, John A. MacDonald the ten, all the way up to Robert Borden on the hundred. This longstanding tradition is set to change next year, however, when some of the political faces of Canadian history will be phased out in order to make room for some of the great Canadians who made their mark outside of the political arena. After much public consultation, this transition will begin with the new face of the ten-dollar bill: Viola Desmond.

If you’ve never heard Desmond’s name before, you’re not alone. Apart from Canadian History buffs, most people aren’t sure what accomplishments landed Borden on the one-hundred-dollar bill either. But Desmond’s story is one the Bank of Canada hopes that all Canadians will come to know during her tenure on the ten. Her story marks the beginning of the civil rights movement here in Canada.

Desmond was born in one of the black neighbourhoods of Halifax in 1914, at a time where racial segregation was still alive and well. Despite this segregation, which included unequal access to things like education and employment opportunity, she developed a keen business sense and quickly turned into one of Halifax’s most successful businesswoman. Among other things, Desmond founded a salon, a beautician’s school and even her own line of hair and makeup products.

On November 8^th, 1946, Desmond ran into some car trouble while passing through the nearby town of New Glasgow on a business trip. While waiting for her repairs to be completed, Desmond stopped in at the local theatre to catch a quick movie. However, when she tried to take a seat, the management asked her to leave, saying that they did not allow people of African decent to sit on the main floor. She would have to relocate to the upper balcony. Desmond, refused to comply with this rule, causing the owners of the theatre to call the police. Desmond was forcibly removed from the theatre and thrown in jail.

While the theatre had a policy of racial segregation, they did not have the law to back them up. Knowing that they would have to release Desmond if they couldn’t charge her with an actual crime, the police began to dig through Desmond’s history and eventually served her with a somewhat suspicious charge of tax-evasion. She was fined for her alleged misdeed, and when she appealed the charge in court, this appeal was unfortunately dismissed from court. Though they took place in a private establishment, Desmond’s experiences caused the nation to begin asking some serious questions in regard to just how equal our democratic nation truly was.

Fans of John A. MacDonald, our first Prime Minister and current face of the ten-dollar bill, need not worry. His image will remain in circulation on one of the other, less circulated notes. But Viola Desmond’s inclusion on our currency emphasises some of our changing values: while Canadian Prime Ministers have played an important role in shaping our county, the story of Canada does not belong to them alone.