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{{Short description|Canadian lawyer and politician}}
{{Use Canadian English|date=January 2023}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name= Sheldon Chumir
| image =Photo of Albertan MLA Sheldon Chumir on a chair.gif
| title= [[Legislative Assembly of Alberta|Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta]]
| constituency= [[Calgary-Buffalo]]
| term_start= 1986
| term_end= January 26, 1992
| predecessor= [[Brian Lee (politician)|Brian Lee]]
| successor= [[Gary Dickson]]
| birth_date= {{birth date|1940|12|3}}
| birth_place= [[Calgary]], Alberta, Canada
| death_date={{death date and age|1992|1|26|1940|12|3}}
| death_place=Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| party= [[Alberta Liberal Party]]
| profession= Lawyer
| alma_mater=[[University of Alberta]]
| religion=
| footnotes=
}}
'''Sheldon Mervin Chumir''' (December 3, 1940 – January 26, 1992) was a lawyer and politician from [[Alberta]], [[Canada]].

Sheldon Chumir was born in [[Calgary]] to a [[Jews|Jewish]] family. He studied law at the [[University of Alberta]], from which he graduated in 1963 with the gold medal.<ref name="Cotler">Cotler, Irwin. ''The New Human Rights Agenda:The First Sheldon Chumir Lecture''. Centre for Constitutional Studies/Centre d'etudes Constitutionnelles, 'Constitutional Forum Constitutionel' Vol.6 Number 2, Winter 1995, p. 43. http://ualawccsprod.srv.ualberta.ca/ccs/images/journals/forum/1-ConstitutionalForum6_2.pdf</ref> He continued his education as a [[Rhodes Scholar]] and earned a [[Bachelor of Letters]] degree from [[Oxford University]] in 1965.

==Law, business career and political activism==
Chumir began his professional career as a tax lawyer with the [[Department of Justice (Canada)|federal Department of Justice]] in [[Toronto]]. In 1971, he joined a Calgary law firm. In 1976, he launched his own private practice focusing on civil liberties cases which on occasion provided representation on a [[pro bono]] basis.<ref name="Cotler"/> He lectured on civil liberties and human rights at the [[University of Calgary]] [[University of Calgary Faculty of Law|Law School]] and founded the Calgary Civil Liberties Association. He was also an entrepreneur; he founded a small oil and gas company, co-founded the entertainment promotion firm Brimstone Productions and engaged in real estate.

In 1983, he ventured into activism by creating Save Public Education, an organization which opposed public funding of religious schools.<ref name="fonds">[http://ww2.glenbow.org/search/archivesMainResults.aspx?XC=/search/archivesMainResults.aspx&TN=MAINCAT&AC=QBE_QUERY&RF=WebResults&DL=0&RL=0&NP=255&MF=WPEngMsg.ini&MR=5&QB0=AND&QF0=Main%20entry%2B%7C%2BTitle&QI0=Sheldon%20Chumir%20fonds Sheldon Chumir fonds], The Glenbow Museum. Retrieved August 29, 2013.</ref> The group ran a successful slate of candidates in a Calgary Board of Education election.

==Political career==
In the [[1986 Alberta general election]], he ran as a [[Alberta Liberal Party|Liberal]] in the [[Electoral district (Canada)|riding]] of [[Calgary-Buffalo]] and defeated incumbent [[Brian Lee (politician)|Brian Lee]] of the [[Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta|Progressive Conservative Party]]. He was among the first four Liberals elected to the [[Legislative Assembly of Alberta]] since 1969. In the Assembly, he advocated on legal affairs, human rights, energy, finance and community service, and he advocated legislation that supported human rights and civil liberties.<ref name="fonds"/> He was re-elected in [[1989 Alberta general election|1989]].

==Death and legacy==
Chumir died in 1992, from cancer.<ref>{{cite news|title=Tributes pour in for life of integrity|page=1|newspaper=Calgary Herald|date=January 28, 1992|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/66014163/calgary-herald/|last=Cunningham|first=Jim|accessdate=December 25, 2020}}</ref> Having no close kin, he had set up his estate to establish the Sheldon Chumir Foundation for Ethics Leadership.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.archivescanada.ca/english/search/ItemDisplay.asp?sessionKey=999999999_142&l=0&lvl=1&v=0&coll=0&itm=255659&rt=1&bill=1 |title=Archived copy |accessdate=2013-08-20 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924041751/http://www.archivescanada.ca/english/search/ItemDisplay.asp?sessionKey=999999999_142&l=0&lvl=1&v=0&coll=0&itm=255659&rt=1&bill=1 |archivedate=2015-09-24 }}</ref> As a politician and human rights lawyer Chumir was an advocate for human rights and believed ethical values are fundamental to a healthy society. The foundation was intended to advocate for leadership and legislature to further the advancement of democratic legislation and social reform.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cbern.ca/cms/One.aspx?objectId=8318239&contextId=625751&BrowseFilterRequest=14&CrmObjectTypeId=6212263&crm_object_type=Organization&AttributeId=38548&CrmObjectId=17721156&crm_object_id=17721156 |title=Organization - Sheldon Chumir Foundation for Ethics in Leadership - Canadian Business Ethics Research Ne |accessdate=2013-08-20 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20130820094744/http://www.cbern.ca/cms/One.aspx?objectId=8318239&contextId=625751&BrowseFilterRequest=14&CrmObjectTypeId=6212263&crm_object_type=Organization&AttributeId=38548&CrmObjectId=17721156&crm_object_id=17721156 |archivedate=2013-08-20 }}</ref> The foundation offers internships and scholarships for students studying the field of Leadership and Law, publishes material pertaining to civil rights, and supports initiatives in the community.

The [[Sheldon M. Chumir Centre]], an eight-story medical facility named in honor of Chumir, opened in Calgary in April 2008. The facility includes an Urgent Care Centre, Mental Health clinic, Diagnostic Imaging department and the [[Southern Alberta HIV Clinic]].

Chumir was called one of Alberta's New Mavericks by Jamie Komarnicki of the ''[[Calgary Herald]]'', who in Chumir's obituary described him as a "soft-spoken man with a quirky sense of humour [who] was a determined champion of public education and individual freedoms."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www2.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/story.html?id=1dcedb61-74d3-4df2-b1b9-72d89f407d27 |title=SHELDON CHUMIR: Politician was a champion for the underdog |accessdate=2013-08-20 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130820064409/http://www2.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/story.html?id=1dcedb61-74d3-4df2-b1b9-72d89f407d27 |archivedate=2013-08-20 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.calgaryherald.com/entertainment/long+list+Mavericks/3655259/story.html|title=The long list of 30 New Mavericks|website=www.calgaryherald.com|language=en-ca|access-date=2019-08-27}}</ref>

In 2012, Chumir was posthumously honored by the Calgary Stampede Foundation with the centennial edition of the Western Legacy Award. This unique edition award recognized contributions of 100 Calgarians and their services to Calgary.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ucalgary.ca/news/utoday/january16-2013/westernlegacy |title=Leaving a lasting western legacy {{!}} News & Events {{!}} University of Calgary |website=www.ucalgary.ca |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303233247/http://www.ucalgary.ca/news/utoday/january16-2013/westernlegacy |archive-date=2016-03-03}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.chumirethicsfoundation.org/ Sheldon Chumir Ethics Foundation]

{{s-start}}
{{s-par|ca-ab}}
{{succession box|
before=[[Brian Lee (politician)|Brian Lee]]|
title=[[Member of the Legislative Assembly|MLA]] [[Calgary-Buffalo]]|
years=1986-1992|
after=[[Gary Dickson]]
}}
{{S-end}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chumir, Sheldon}}
[[Category:1940 births]]
[[Category:1992 deaths]]
[[Category:Academic staff of the University of Calgary]]
[[Category:Alberta Liberal Party MLAs]]
[[Category:Alumni of Brasenose College, Oxford]]
[[Category:Canadian civil rights lawyers]]
[[Category:Canadian Rhodes Scholars]]
[[Category:Deaths from cancer in Alberta]]
[[Category:Human rights lawyers]]
[[Category:Jewish Canadian politicians]]
[[Category:Lawyers in Alberta]]
[[Category:Tax lawyers]]
[[Category:University of Alberta alumni]]
[[Category:20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta]]

Sheldon Chumir - Revision history

imported>Bearcat: /* External links */ recat