The BC Civil Liberties Association is pleased to announce the 2014 Liberty Awards honorees. The Liberty Award recipients will be honored at the BC Civil Liberties Association‘s Liberty Awards Gala coming up in two weeks on Thursday, June 19, 2014. The evening will also feature a keynote address by the compelling advocate Dr. Cindy Blackstock.
BC Civil Liberties Association President Lindsay Lyster said: “The Liberty Award recipients are devoted in their own ways to the cause of protecting and expanding hard-won democratic rights and freedoms. Their principled, creative, and often courageous efforts to do right and seek justice are invaluable – and essential – to promoting a free society.”
“From helping to end a form of indefinite solitary confinement in Canadian women’s prisons, to fuelling the global debate on anti-surveillance, to challenging censorship through the arts, the Liberty Award winners showcase the significant gains that can be achieved through dedicated and passionate work. We are delighted to honour their impact and efforts at the Liberty Awards Gala.” said BCCLA Executive Director Josh Paterson.
The Liberty Awards Gala event is an opportunity to celebrate exceptional contributions to human rights and civil liberties, and to help support the work of the BC Civil Liberties Association throughout the year.
Organizations or individuals interested in sponsoring the event can learn more here.
Media Contact:
Lindsay Lyster, President, 604-710-7227
Josh Paterson, Executive Director, 604-630-9752
The BC Civil Liberties Association 2014 Liberty Award Recipients:
• Reg Robson Award: Dr. Jennifer Wade
The Reg Robson award is given annually to honour a community member who has demonstrated a substantial and long-lasting contribution to the cause of civil liberties in BC and Canada. This is the first, and longest standing, award given by the BCCLA. It honors a lifetime commitment to advancing human rights principles.
o Dr. Jennifer Wade has worked tirelessly for human rights locally and globally, contributing significantly to the cause of civil liberties and human rights in BC and Canada. Among her many activities, Jennifer is the co-founder of Amnesty International’s Vancouver chapter, and a long serving member of the Board of Directors for the Elizabeth Fry Society and SOS Children’s Villages.
Excellence in Legal Advocacy – Individual: John Conroy, Q.C.
o John has changed the face of prison law in BC and across Canada. Additionally, he has acted in numerous cases on the issue of Marihuana Medical Access Regulations (MMAR), as well as serving as counsel to the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users (VANDU) in the historic and successful effort to keep Vancouver’s safe injection site, Insite, open.
• Excellence in Legal Advocacy – Firm: JFK Law Corporation
o JFK Law Corporation represented BobbyLee Worm in the lawsuit that put an end to ‘the Management Protocol’, a federal prison program that allowed for the indefinite and long-term solitary confinement of incarcerated women. Prison officials released Ms. Worm from the program two days after the suit was filed. Later that same month, the Correctional Services of Canada announced that it would end its use of the program across Canada.
• Excellence in Youth Activism: Fraser Valley Youth Society
o The Fraser Valley Youth Society took initiative, demonstrated their bravery and leadership, and organized Abbotsford’s first LGBTQ+ Pride Parade. Their hard work and determination meant that the May 2013 event was a success, attracting hundreds of marchers, hundreds more spectators, and paving the way for LGBTQ+ expression, inclusion, and pride in the city!
• Excellence in the Arts: Franke James
o Franke has spent years producing original artwork inspired by social and environmental justice. Outspoken on environmental issues, her works have come into conflict with the federal government. Her experiences as an artist facing muzzling and censorship by the federal government led to the publishing of her third book, Banned on the Hill, which chronicles her experience with free expression through eight “visual essays”.
• Excellence in Journalism: Ewen MacAskill, Laura Poitras, Barton D. Gellman, and Glenn Greenwald
o This year’s award for excellence in Journalism goes to the journalists who first revealed the extent of global surveillance activities. Their work not only brought to public attention the information gathered by whistleblower Edward Snowden, but it continues to inform and fuel the public discourse around surveillance and privacy issues.
About the Liberty Awards
Established to commemorate the BCCLA’s 50th anniversary in 2012, the BCCLA’s Liberty Awards recognize outstanding achievements to protect and promote human rights and freedoms in Canada. Partners of the 2014 Liberty Awards Gala include: International WebexPress Inc, Scandal Brewing, CUPE BC, Moore Edgar Lyster, St Hubertus Wines, United Steelworkers Union.
