Lillian Dyck

Last updated
The Honourable
Lillian Dyck
OC
Senator from Saskatchewan
In office
March 24, 2005 –August 24, 2020
Residence(s) Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Occupation
  • Neuroscientist
  • professor
  • researcher

Lillian Eva Quan Dyck, OC (born August 24, 1945) is a retired Canadian senator from Saskatchewan. A member of the Cree Gordon First Nation in Saskatchewan, and a first generation Chinese Canadian, she is the first female First Nations senator and first Canadian-born senator of Chinese descent. [1]

Contents

Before being appointed to the Senate, Dyck was a neuroscientist with the University of Saskatchewan, where she was also an associate dean. On March 12, 1999, Dyck, who is one of the first Aboriginal women in Canada to pursue an academic career in the sciences, was presented with a lifetime achievement award by Indspire. She continues to teach at the university as well as conduct research on a part-time basis. In 2019 she received a Women of Distinction Awards Lifetime Achievement Award from the YWCA Saskatoon. [2] [3]

Alongside her research and academic work, the Honourable Dr. Lillian Eva Quan Dyck is well known for advocating for equity in the education and employment of women, Chinese Canadians and Aboriginals.

Early life and education

Dyck was born in North Battleford, Saskatchewan, to a Chinese father, Yok Lee Quan, and Cree mother, Eva Muriel Mcnab. Her father came to Canada after paying the Head Tax, leaving his first family behind in China. Her mother was born on the Gordon Reserve, but lost her status when she married a non-Indian. She, like most First Nations women at the time, was sent to a residential school.

Dyck moved around frequently, living in many small towns in Saskatchewan and Alberta. Her family hid their Indigenous heritage in order to protect themselves from racism. Taking her father's last name of Quan, her family was essentially the only Chinese family in town. [4] As most First Nations people were living on reserves, she had no connection to them. Her family was the only non-white family in town.

Her father ran a Chinese cafe. [5] She grew up waitressing and doing many other jobs, such as at the Regal Cafe in Killam, Alberta, where her mother's tombstone lies. [5]

Dyck attended Swift Current Collegiate Institute, where she was actively encouraged to go to university.

Dyck earned her Bachelor of Arts (Honours), Master of Science Degrees in Biochemistry in 1968 and 1970 respectively, as well as her Ph.D. in Biological Psychiatry in 1981, all from the University of Saskatchewan. She was conferred a Doctor of Letters, Honoris Causa by Cape Breton University in 2007. [1]

Career

Academic

Before being appointed to the Senate, Dyck was a neuroscientist with the University of Saskatchewan, where she was also associate dean. On March 12, 1999, Dyck, who is of Cree and Chinese heritage and was one of the first Aboriginal women in Canada to pursue an academic career in the sciences, was presented with a lifetime achievement award by Indspire. Her research focuses on mechanisms of action of monoamine oxidase inhibitors to identify drugs useful for treatment of neurological disorders and stroke. [6] She continues to teach at the university as well as conduct research on a part-time basis.

Senate

Dyck was appointed to the Senate on the recommendation of Prime Minister Paul Martin on March 24, 2005.

Upon appointment, Dyck wished to sit as a New Democratic Party senator, but NDP spokesperson Karl Belanger immediately indicated that the party would not recognize her as a member of the NDP caucus: as the party platform specifically favours abolition of the Senate, it refused to confer legitimacy on the body by accepting Dyck; additionally, Dyck's membership in the NDP was revealed to have lapsed. [7] Under the rules of the Senate, senators are free to designate themselves however they see fit, and Dyck changed her designation to say Independent New Democratic Party. [8] On January 15, 2009, she joined the Liberal Senate caucus. [9] [10]

On January 29, 2014, Liberal Party leader Justin Trudeau announced all Liberal Senators, including Dyck, were removed from the Liberal caucus, and would continue sitting as Independents. [11] The Senators referred to themselves as the Senate Liberal Caucus even though they are no longer members of the parliamentary Liberal caucus. [12]

In 2014 Dyck accused Conservative MP Rob Clarke, who is also native, of "behaving like a white man" by pushing the Indian Act Amendment and Replacement Act. She later said she recognized the comment could be hurtful. [13]

In April 2018 The Feminist Alliance for International Action recognized Lillian as a member of the Indigenous Famous Six. Other members are Jeannette Corbiere-Lavell, Yvonne Bedard, Sharon McIvor, Lynn Gehl, and Senator Sandra Lovelace Nicholas. [14]

In November 2019, Dyck joined the rest of the Senate Liberal Caucus in deciding to dissolve the caucus and form the new Progressive Senate Group. [15] [16]

Political Work

Dyck's priorities as a senator included Aboriginal women (Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Violence towards Aboriginal Women), Bill C-31 and its impact on Aboriginal women and men, women in science (recruitment and retention of women into professional scientific and technological careers), Aboriginal education and employment (recruitment and retention of aboriginals in the educational system and on the job), and mental health (the causes and treatment of psychiatric disorders). [17] [18] [19]

She was outspoken on the issue of violence against women and successfully advocated for changes to legislation that will require judges to consider stiffer penalties for violent crimes against Indigenous women. [20]

She also worked on Bill S-3, a bill that to restore official Indian status for thousands of women who lost their status for marrying non-indigenous men. [20]

Speeches
Selected Speeches by the Honourable Dr. Lillian Dyck
DateLocationSpeeches [21] [22]
June 26, 2018Whitehorse, YKCASHRA 2018, The Time is Now: Change & Innovation in Human Rights Today - Bill S-215: an Act of Reconciliation which would amend the criminal code to provide specific provisions for Aboriginal female victims of violence
May 15, 2018Prince Albert, SKNorthern Justice Symposium 2018: Systemic Racism in the Criminal Justice System
August 27, 2017Edmonton, ABUniversity of Alberta. Indigenization and improving Aboriginal student success in the Sciences.
August 26, 2017Surrey, BCWhat Does a Senator Do? My Work on Missing and Murdered Aboriginal Women and Girls.
October 28, 2015Regina, SKFirst Nations University of Canada, University of Regina. "Missing and Murdered Aboriginal Women and Girls: Revealing the Numbers Game."
May 6, 2010Prince Albert, SKCanadian Diabetes Association. "Diabetes and Aboriginal Canadians."
September 27, 2007Scarborough, ONChinese Canadian National Council Dinner. “Chinese Canadian Issues.”
February 6, 2006Saskatoon, SKSaskatchewan Institute of Applied Science and Technology Conference. “Medicine Wheel and Science.”

Works inspired by her

Café Daughter, a play written by Kenneth T. Williams, was a fictionalized account of Dyck's childhood. [23] The play was adapted into the 2023 film Café Daughter by Mohawk filmmaker Shelley Niro. [24]

Bibliography [25]

Selected Academic Publications

Non-academic publications

Related Research Articles

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References

  1. 1 2 Canada, Senate of (11 October 2016). "Senate of Canada - Senator Lillian Eva Dyck". Senate of Canada. Retrieved 2018-09-22.
  2. ↑ "Senator Lillian Dyck to receive lifetime achievement award". CBC News Saskatoon. 2019-05-06. Retrieved 2019-08-31.
  3. ↑ "2019 Women of Distinction Recipients". YWCA Saskatoon. Archived from the original on 2020-11-01. Retrieved 2019-08-31.
  4. ↑ Canada, Senate of (16 June 2017). "Senate of Canada - From 'Café Daughter' to senator: The story of Lillian Eva Dyck takes the stage at the NAC". Senate of Canada. Retrieved 2018-09-22.
  5. 1 2 Dyck, Lillian (April 2017). "My story: An Aboriginal Neuroscientist and Senator" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on June 14, 2017. Retrieved September 22, 2018.
  6. ↑ "Brother encouraged 'A' student's curiosity about science". Ammsa.com. Retrieved 2018-09-22.
  7. ↑ "Dallaire, Eggleton among 9 new senators". CBC News. March 24, 2005. Retrieved 2015-11-18.
  8. ↑ Parliament of Canada—DYCK, The Hon. Lillian Eva
  9. ↑ "Independent senator jumps to Liberals". Toronto Star . January 15, 2009. Retrieved 2015-11-18.
  10. ↑ "Official Site for Senator Lillian Dyck". Archived from the original on 2008-10-04. Retrieved 2008-08-24.
  11. ↑ "Justin Trudeau removes senators from Liberal caucus". CBC News. January 29, 2014. Retrieved 2015-11-18.
  12. ↑ "Trudeau's expulsion catches Liberal senators by surprise". Globe and Mail. January 29, 2014. Retrieved January 29, 2014.
  13. ↑ "Rob Clarke's controversial bill to change the Indian Act passed into law". CBC News. December 22, 2014. Retrieved 2015-11-18.
  14. ↑ "'Famous Six' to be celebrated for work on '6(1)a All the Way'".
  15. ↑ Tasker, John Paul (J.P.) (14 November 2019). "There's another new faction in the Senate: the Progressive Senate Group". CBC News Online. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
  16. ↑ "One-time Liberal senators rename themselves as Progressive Senate Group". CTV News. The Canadian Press. 14 November 2019. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
  17. ↑ "Senator Lillian Dyck". sen.parl.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2018-09-25. Retrieved 2018-09-22.
  18. ↑ APTN News (28 November 2018), Discrepancy when men are sentenced for violence against Indigenous women | APTN News , retrieved 2018-12-31
  19. ↑ "LEGISinfo - Senate Public Bill S-215 (42-1)". www.parl.ca. Retrieved 2018-12-31.
  20. 1 2 "Sask. Senator Lillian Dyck announces retirement after serving more than 15 years". CBC News. August 25, 2020. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  21. ↑ "Senator Lillian Dyck". sen.parl.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 2018-09-25. Retrieved 2018-09-22.
  22. ↑ "Public Speeches". senatordyck.sencanada.ca. Archived from the original on 2020-08-14. Retrieved 2018-09-22.
  23. ↑ Colin Maclean, "Colin MacLean review: Cafe Daughter". Edmonton Sun , November 27, 2015.
  24. ↑ Eden Suh, "Film: Café Daughter shooting wraps up in Sudbury". Sudbury.com , May 22, 2022.
  25. ↑ "DYCK, The Hon. Lillian Eva, B.A. Hon., M.Sc., Ph.D., D.Litt" . Retrieved 2017-10-26.
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