Dr. Harold Cardinal

One of Canada's greatest citizens passed away in Edmonton on Friday, June 03, 2005.

Dr. Harold Cardinal was a remarkable and distinguished First Nations leader, lawyer, and scholar. Students, Faculty and Staff were honored by his long-time association with the University of British Columbia's Faculty of Law, where he earned his Ph.D. for his studies of the inter-relationships between Cree law and the state law of Canada. Widely considered the pre-eminent First Nations leader of the twentieth century, he ranks with the likes of John Diefenbaker, Lester Pearson, and Pierre Trudeau as a leader who shaped this country. He was also a celebrated Canadian author, a lawyer, and a scholar.

Born January 27 th , 1945 and raised on the Sucker Creek Cree Reserve, he was elected as President of the Indian Association of Alberta (IAA) at the age of 23. He quickly established an unprecedented - and inimitable - presence on the national scene. During his nine terms in office, Dr. Cardinal was instrumental in creating programs to develop and preserve Indian culture, played a key role in the creation of the National Indian Brotherhood (the precursor of the Assembly of First Nations) and engaged in pivotal negotiations with the federal government of Canada regarding the direction of Indian policy.

His groundbreaking book The Unjust Society: the Tragedy of Canada's Indians , was published in 1969 as a response to a federal government "White Paper" urging the abolition of Indian status and the assimilation of First Nations peoples into the dominant society. An eloquent and impassioned work, The Unjust Society set out clearly and persuasively why the historical, customary and legal rights of Canada's First peoples could not simply be folded into those of the immigrant society. The book played an enormously important role in educating Canadians from non-aboriginal communities about the profound injustices underlying a society that thought of itself as "just". The clarity and focus of the writing, the power and passion of the arguments, were remarkable. It was the first time that most non-aboriginal Canadians heard directly about injustices, issues, and constitutional understandings that, while widely understood in aboriginal communities, had been effaced from public consciousness elsewhere, papered over by academics and by the state. The book was powerful. Its publication had an enormous effect on Canadian public opinion, public policy, and on scholarship. It profoundly changed Canada.

Dr. Cardinal also played a pivotal role in drafting Citizens Plus (1970) - the "Red Paper" - which emerged from many months of work in consultation with Alberta First Nations peoples in 42 communities.

In 1977 Cardinal left elected office to assume the role of Regional Director General for the Department of Indian Affairs in Alberta, an official government position only once previously held by a First Nations person.  He subsequently served as a consultant to First Nations of northern Alberta.  In 1982 he was elected the Chief of the Sucker Creek band, and in 1983 was appointed Vice Chief for the Prairie Region by the Assembly of First Nations. 

"I have known Dr. Harold Cardinal since long before he completed the triple crown of becoming a 'Doctor, Lawyer, and Indian Chief'," said AFN National Chief Phil Fontaine. "He truly has been an inspirational warrior and leader for First Nations all of his life."

Dr. Cardinal's historic contributions to public life in Canada have been widely recognized. In addition to his earned doctorate in law, Dr. Cardinal was awarded an honorary LL.D. from the University of Alberta (1999), served as Indigenous Scholar in Residence at the University of Alberta Faculty of Law, and was honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation. He was called to the Alberta Bar in 2004. UBC First Nations Law Professor June McCue remembers Dr. Cardinal for his scholarship and also for "the support, humour and joy that he brought to our gatherings. Harold was our philosopher, scholar, leader, and companion."

His Ph.D. work was focused on the relationships between Cree and State law. His doctoral supervisor, Professor Pue, observed that this was a task for which Harold was uniquely qualified. "In addition to his university learning", Pue said, "Dr. Cardinal invested years in acquiring the learning offered by Cree elders. His life quest has produced a lawyer and a scholar who uniquely, deeply, bridges two worlds. Dr. Cardinal is not just one of the most important historical figures of twentieth century Canada: he is in every way a uniquely accomplished human being."

Dr. Cardinal will be remembered as an outstanding Canadian who dedicated his life to the flourishing of Canada's First Nations. His expertise, honesty, commitment, good humour and charisma will forever be remembered in the hearts of the many Canadians whom he touched.

Publications of Dr. Harold Cardinal:

The Unjust Society: the Tragedy of Canada's Indians (Mel Hurtig Publishers, 1969; republished Douglas & McIntyre, 1999)

The Rebirth of Canada's Indians (Mel Hurtig Publishers, 1977)

Alberta elders' Cree dictionary = Alperta ohci kehtehayak nehiyaw otwestamâkewasinahikan by Nancy LeClaire & George Cardinal ; edited by Earle Waugh ; Cree consultants, Emily Hunter, Earle H. Waugh, and Harold Cardinal (University of Alberta Press, 1998)

Treaty elders of Saskatchewan : our dream is that our peoples will one day be clearly recognized as nations (with W. Hildebrand.) (University of Calgary Press, 2000)