Viola Desmond's sister, Wanda Robson, speaks in Montreal on Martin Luther King Day

The City of Montreal paid tribute to Canadian civil rights icon Viola Desmond during its annual commemorative breakfast to mark Martin Luther King Day.

Desmond will be the first Canadian woman to grace the front of the $10 bill, and is celebrated as a civil rights advocate and is often compared with her American contemporary Rosa Parks.

Desmond was jailed for sitting in the "whites only" section of a Nova Scotia film house in 1946.

She died in 1965 but her 90-year-old sister, Wanda Robson, was at Montreal City Hall Monday morning to accept the honour.

"I can't even express how I feel," she said. "I am so proud."

Robson, the youngest of 15 siblings, credits Montreal with giving her family opportunities they didn't have in their hometown of Halifax, including being able to further their education.

"Everybody in the family, one by one, they went to Montreal, stayed with my sister, studied and went out on their own. They were accepted here."

Desmond went to Field Beauty Culture School and returned to Halifax to start her own business, a beauty parlour for black women. Her sister described her as "kind, intelligent and always driven for her goal."

"The contribution that Viola made is endless," said Robson. "It's a beginning and yet the beginning keeps going."

Robson recounted the "shameful" treatment her sister received at the theatre in 1946.

"The manager came and said, 'Are you going to move, or will I have to get a policeman?'" Robson told CBC Radio One's Homerun host Sue Smith.

"Anyway, she said, 'Well, you'll have to get a policeman.' I mean 4-10" or 4-11", whatever she was, 95 pounds and she said, 'I'm not moving.'"

In a speech, Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre underlined Desmond's courage and determination.

"I think she was a tremendous inspiration."

Following her speech, Robson was invited to sign Montreal's Golden Book.