Kiviaq (lawyer)
| Kiviaq | |
|---|---|
| Edmonton City Councillor | |
|
In office 1968–1974 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
David Charles Ward January 23, 1936 Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut |
| Died |
April 24, 2016 (aged 80) Edmonton, Alberta |
| Alma mater |
Northwestern State University Washington State University |
| Occupation | Lawyer |
Kiviaq (born David Charles Ward;[1] January 23, 1936 – April 24, 2016) was a Canadian Inuit lawyer, politician, and former sportsman.[2] He was raised in Edmonton, Alberta. Kiviaq grew up in an era of rampant racism, with vivid memories of running from white kids who shouted insults like "flea-bitten Eskimo." Fending off neighbourhood bullies honed his fighting skills, and he was soon training at a local boxing club.
He exploded onto Edmonton’s political scene in 1968 after being elected to city council and winning the prestigious Vanier Award as one of Canada's "five most outstanding young men," for his work as a public relations officer and recreational director for the city. He served on the Edmonton City Council as an alderman, and ran for mayor in the 1970s. A personable politician, he successfully lobbied for the Commonwealth Games. He ran his own open-line radio show at CJCA and CJOI before going to law school. He was the first Inuk to become a lawyer, and is responsible for several important advances in establishing the legal rights of the Inuit people. He was called to the bar in 1983, a moment recognized in a letter from then Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau as a "solid and progressive achievement in the history of your people." In September of 2000, Mr. Ward made the initial application to change his name back to Kiviaq, the name he received in 1936 at his parents’ camp somewhere near Chesterfield Inlet on the west coast of Hudson Bay. In 2001, he won the legal right to use his single-word Inuktituk name.[3][1]In 2003, Edmonton mayor Bill Smith declared March 14 "Kiviaq Day".[4]
Athletic career
In Edmonton, Kiviaq took to boxing to deal with racially motivated abuse from other children. He won his first Golden Gloves championship at age 13, and later became a prizefighter, winning 108 of 112 fights, capturing a string of provincial and Golden Glove championships. In 1955, aged 19, he became the first Inuk (or "Eskimo") to play on the Edmonton Eskimos football team. However, Kiviaq never played a regular-season game. Before the season started he suffered a broken neck that left him paralyzed. It was months before he could even wiggle his little finger, but he made a full recovery. He later won a scholarship to play football at Northwestern State College in Louisiana. He was still eligible to play college ball because he had never earned a salary playing for the Eskimos.
Health
Kiviaq had Ménière's disease, and for much of his life was unable to ride on an airplane or be a passenger in a vehicle without becoming physically ill; however, by 2009, surgeries to treat his cancer had altered his metabolism to the degree that travel sickness was no longer a problem.[5] He battled cancer for many years until he died on April 24, 2016 in an Edmonton hospice.[6]
Documentary
He is the subject of the documentary film Kiviaq vs. Canada, by award-winning producer Zacharias Kunuk.
See also
References
- 1 2 >Kiviaq Versus Canada presskit, at Catbird Productions; 2006; retrieved January 9, 2013
- ↑ https://www.epl.ca/edmonton-history/edmonton-elections/biographies-mayors-and-councillors?id=W
- ↑ Names and Nunavut: Culture and Identity in the Inuit Homeland, by Valerie Alia; published by Berghahn Books, 2008; via Google Books
- ↑ "Atanarjuat director celebrates modern-day champion". CTV television network. 2006-04-25. Retrieved 2007-03-02.
- ↑ Famed Inuk returns to Kivalliq for first time in 70 years, by Darrell Greer, at Northern News Service Online; published September 9, 2009; retrieved April 29, 2016
- ↑ 'I am what I am:' Inuit Kiviaq was pioneer in sport, law and politics