I was glad, moved even, to see substantial obituary coverage on the death of Nisga'a leader Frank Calder, who died in Victoria on November 4 at the age of 91.
The Calder case, the Nisga'a land claims case decided by the Supreme Court of Canada in 1973, was his. It looks more and more like histories are going to see in Calder the decisive shift in aboriginal law in Canada. Calder worked for that case for decades. The Nisga'a didn't get a clear victory, but the conclusions of the judges forced the country on the course to a new acceptance of aboriginal title. Lots to be done on that road yet, of course!
Calder, Nisga'a "chief of chiefs" pretty much forever, was the first status Indian to attend university in B.C., the first elected to the B.C. legislature (1949, no less), and he had a long string of similar accomplishments. He was talking about a B.C. Bill of Rights in 1950. He was also a fish plant worker sometimes.
Update: Sandra Martin's fine and nuanced obituary in the Globe and Mail (Nov 9) points out that he was elected to the BC legislature before aboriginals had the right to vote. She also deftly hints at some tensions between Calder and his people, not that they diminish their shared accomplishments.
