Brenda Murphy

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For the Irish playwright, see Brenda Murphy (playwright).
Her Honour the Honourable
Brenda Murphy
OStJ ONB
Murphy in 2020
32nd Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick
Assumed office
September 8, 2019
MonarchsElizabeth II
Charles III
Governors GeneralJulie Payette
Mary Simon
PremierBlaine Higgs
Preceded byJocelyne Roy-Vienneau
Personal details
Born1958 or 1959 (age 64–65)[1]
Domestic partnerLinda Boyle[2]

Brenda Murphy OStJ ONB (born 1958 or 1959) is a Canadian activist and politician, who is the 32nd lieutenant governor of New Brunswick, since September 8, 2019.[3]

Murphy is the first openly LGBTQ person to hold any viceregal office in Canadian history.

Career[edit]

She formerly served as a municipal councillor in Grand Bay–Westfield and served as the executive director of the Saint John Women's Empowerment Network in Saint John, best known for her advocacy on poverty and domestic violence issues.[4] She served on a federal advisory council on poverty, and on New Brunswick's advisory council on the status of women.[2]

Lieutenant-governor[edit]

Since September 8, 2019, she has served as lieutenant governor of New Brunswick. She is both the province's first openly LGBTQ lieutenant governor and the first openly LGBTQ person to hold any viceregal office in Canada.[1]

In April 2022, the Court of Queen's Bench of New Brunswick ruled that her appointment as lieutenant governor violated the bilingual status of the province under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, since Murphy is unilingual English-speaking.[5] However in May 2024, the Court of Appeal of New Brunswick overturned this judgment.[6]

Honor & Awards[edit]

Ribbon Bar of Brenda Murphy
Ribbon Description Post-nominal letters Notes
Officer of the Order of St. John OStJ [7]
Member of the Order of New Brunswick ONS [7]
Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal [7]Canadian version
King Charles III Coronation Medal [7]Canadian version

Personal life[edit]

Murphy is an out lesbian and lives in Grand Bay–Westfield. Her partner Linda Boyle has accompanied her on official engagements, including a visit to King Charles III at Buckingham Palace in November 2022.[8]

Arms[edit]

Coat of arms of Brenda Murphy
Crest
A butternut tree Or leaved Purpure fructed Argent issuant from a circlet Or the upper rim set with purple violets Proper.
Escutcheon
Per bend wavy Or and Purpure a bend wavy counterchanged between in chief an orca enarched Purpure embellished Argent and in base semé of mayflowers Argent seeded Or.
Supporters
Two snow geese Argent beaked and legged Or their exterior wings elevated and embellished standing on a cable ferry Purpure its railing Argent issuant from a bar wavy Argent charged with a barrulet wavy Purpure.
Motto
Every Voice Matters[9]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Bobbi-Jean Mackinnon, "Brenda Murphy 'humbled' to be appointed New Brunswick's new lieutenant-governor". CBC News New Brunswick, September 5, 2019.
  2. ^ a b "Women's advocate Brenda Murphy named new lieutenant-governor of New Brunswick". CTV News Atlantic. Canadian Press. September 5, 2019. Retrieved September 9, 2019.
  3. ^ Alexander Quon, "Brenda Murphy officially sworn in as lieutenant-governor of New Brunswick". Global News, September 9, 2019.
  4. ^ "Women’s advocate Brenda Murphy named new lieutenant-governor of New Brunswick". Toronto Star, September 5, 2019.
  5. ^ Poitras, Jacques (14 April 2022). "Appointment of unilingual N.B. lieutenant-governor violated charter, judge rules". CBC News. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
  6. ^ Poitras, Jacques (23 May 2024). "N.B. Appeal Court says lieutenant-governor is not required to be bilingual". CBC News. Retrieved 23 May 2024. But the appeal court says the Charter doesn't specify a right to "speak" to the lieutenant-governor herself in English or French, only to communicate with her office.
  7. ^ a b c d L'hon. / The Hon. Brenda Murphy [@LtGov_NB] (May 6, 2024). "It was a great honour to receive a King Charles III Coronation Medal from Her Excellency The Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada, during a virtual ceremony today. #CoronationMedal" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  8. ^ The Royal Family, Court Circular, 30 November 2022
  9. ^ "Brenda Louise Murphy". Canadian Heraldic Authority. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
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