Georges Erasmus

Who is Georges Erasmus?

Georges Henry Erasmus, OC is a Canadian politician. He was the national chief of the Assembly of First Nations from 1985 to 1991.

Erasmus was born in a Dene community of the Northwest Territories to a family of 12 children. He attended high school in Yellowknife. In 1967, he was a volunteer with the Company of Young Canadians.

He became president of the Dene Nation in 1974 and while president fought against the proposed Mackenzie Valley Pipeline.

He was the federal New Democratic Party candidate in 1979 for Western Arctic riding.

Erasmus was national chief of the Assembly of First Nations during the Oka Crisis. After serving two terms as national chief he co-chaired the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples.

Erasmus has been honoured for his work many times. He was appointed to the Order of Canada as a member in 1987, and was promoted to officer in 1999. He has also been awarded honorary doctorates by seven Canadian universities, including the University of Toronto, Queen's University, and the University of Manitoba. He was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Western Ontario in June 2006. In 2009 he was awarded the Governor General's Northern Medal.