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Marion Dewar
Marion Dewar was mayor of Ottawa, Canada, from 1978 to 1985, and a member of the Parliament of Canada from 1986 to 1988.
She was born Marion Bell in Montreal in 1928, and was raised in the town of Buckingham, Quebec, just outside of Ottawa. Originally a public health nurse, she married civil servant Ken Dewar in 1951. She became an Ottawa alderman for Britannia Ward in 1972, and was elected Deputy Mayor in 1974, a position she held until 1978. In 1977 she ran unsuccessfully for the Ontario New Democratic Party in the provincial election in the riding of Ottawa West.
She was elected mayor in 1978. She is a committed peace activist pushing for nuclear disarmament, and personally picketing the American embassy after the invasion of Grenada. Dewar appeared in the 1985 documentary Speaking our Peace. As mayor she convened a convention on the issue of homosexuality six months after taking office. In 1979, she helped launch Project 4000 with the aim of finding sponsors for 4,000 Vietnamese refugees in Ottawa. Ottawa today still has a large Vietnamese community.
In 1985, she became president of the federal New Democratic Party. She was elected to the House of Commons in a 1987 by-election in the riding of Hamilton Mountain, replacing NDP incumbent Ian Deans. She had been invited to the riding in the hopes that a star candidate would keep the riding in NDP hands, but faced a strong competition for the nomination from future MP David Christopherson. She was defeated in the 1988 general election, losing to Liberal Beth Phinney by only 74 votes.
Continuing to play a prominent role in the NDP, she was one of the leading backers of Audrey McLaughlin's leadership bid. In the 1993 election, she attempted to return to Parliament for the riding of Ottawa Centre, but lost by a wide margin to Liberal incumbent Mac Harb in an election where the NDP fared poorly across the country.
In 1995, she became chair of Oxfam Canada. She also served as the chair of the Ottawa-Carleton Police Services Board which oversaw the merger of the Ottawa, Nepean, and Gloucester police forces into a unified organization. However, in December 1995, she, along with the other three provincially appointed members of the board, were fired in mid-term by the new government of Mike Harris who disagreed with their political views[citation needed]. (The three Ottawa City Council appointees to the OCPSB, however, were not dismissed.) Dewar and fellow board member Judy Hunter sued the government for unfair dismissal. In a precedent-setting case, the court ruled in their favour, and again on appeal.
In 2002, Dewar was made a Member of the Order of Canada, Canada's highest civilian honour.
She has five children, and a number of grandchildren. Her son, Paul Dewar, was elected to Parliament in the 2006 federal election, winning the Ottawa Centre riding for the NDP.
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evNCR EVENT
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March 10, 2009 - Ottawa
Run for Your Life!
Be inspired. Ask the hard questions.
Imagine yourself in the race.
Former women candidates and seasoned campaign staffers will weigh in on what’s worked, what hasn’t, and why running for office is worth the trouble.
Tuesday March 10 2009
Parliament Pub (101 Sparks Street)
5 pm – 7:30 pm
Free
RSVPs encouraged but not required
equalvoiceottawa@gmail.com
Open to everyone: EV members & non-members.
[English][French]
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evUPCOMING SPECIAL EVENTS
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Equal Voice announces that it has chosen The Right Honourable Kim Campbell, former Prime Minister of Canada, to be the winner of the 2009 Eve Award (Toronto), given in recognition of her achievements in political life.
Ms. Campbell served as the nineteenth and first female Prime Minister of Canada in 1993. She also held the cabinet portfolios of Minister of State for Indian Affairs and Northern Development, Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Minister of National Defence and Minister of Veterans' Affairs. She was the first woman to hold the Justice and Defence portfolios and the first woman Minister of Defence of a NATO country.
“Kim Campbell has achieved what no other woman has in politics in this country”, said Donna Dasko, Equal Voice's Acting National Chair “We want to honour her achievements, to hear her words of wisdom and to introduce her to a new generation of young women who will be the future Prime Ministers of Canada”.
Ms. Campbell will be honoured by Equal Voice and the Canadian Club of Toronto at the fourth annual Women in Public Life luncheon to be held on April 30, 2009, where she will reflect on her experiences in public life. Tickets may be purchased at http://www.canadianclub.org/.
Previous recipients of the EVE Award are Member of Parliament Carolyn Bennett, the Honourable Flora MacDonald, Her Worship Mayor Hazel McCallion, and former Ontario provincial cabinet minister Frances Lankin.
Equal Voice in partnership with the Canadian Club of Ottawa is pleased to announce the 2009 EVE Award (Ottawa) luncheon on April 14, 2009 at the Westin Ottawa. This year’s EVE Award recipient is The Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, Federal Minister of Health.
The EVE Award is given to a woman who has achieved significant success in her political career or to a person who has made a significant contribution to advancing the representation of women in political life.
For ticket information, please contact admin@canadianclubottawa.ca
For sponsorship opportunities, please contact evncr@sympatico.ca
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ev SPONSORS 2007 - 2008
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Thank you to the following individuals and corporate sponsors for their generosity:
Senator Catherine Callbeck
Charlie Coffey
Hon. Margaret Norrie McCain
Senator Nancy Ruth
PLATINUM SPONSORS:
BRONZE SPONSORS:
Michael MacMillian
Rosemary Speirs
TELECOMMUNICATIONS SPONSOR:
National Awareness Campaign, Getting to the Gate, and Experiences Sponsor:
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ev ONLINE CAMPAIGN SCHOOL
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This online course aims to increase the number of elected women by providing practical tools for women of all ages, backgrounds and walks of life interested in running for public office. View course.
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