George, Ron

GEORGE, Ron, Wet'suwet'en Hereditary Chief (b 30 May 1945, Smithers). After working in the LOGGING and building industries, he became involved in aboriginal politics as a board member of the BC Assoc of Non-Status Indians (BCANSI) in 1970 and was founding vice-president of its successor organization, the United Native Nations (UNN), in 1976. Later elected president of the UNN (1985–91), he actively supported the establishment in BC of the National Indian Veterans Association (now the National Aboriginal Veterans Association), and helped lobby to establish both Bill C-31, which ended discrimination against aboriginal women in the Indian Act, and the Family Reunification Program, which assisted aboriginal people who had been "adopted out" to find their birth families. As president of the UNN he was also one of the founding members of the Vancouver Aboriginal Child and Family Services Society. From 1991 to 1994 he was president of the Native Council of Canada (NCC). See also ABORIGINAL RIGHTS; FIRST NATIONS; WET'SUWET'EN.
by Heidi Brown