Jim Green (May 25, 1943 – February 28, 2012) was an American-Canadian who was a

longshoreman A dockworker (also called a longshoreman, stevedore, docker, wharfman, lumper or wharfie) is a waterfront manual laborer who loads and unloads ships. As a result of the intermodal shipping container revolution, the required number of dockworke ...

taxicab A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a Driving, driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of thei ...

driver, community activist, non-profit housing developer, municipal

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

, university instructor and development consultant.

Early life and education

Born in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

, Green moved to Canada to avoid being drafted for the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. Green held a Masters in

Anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, society, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including archaic humans. Social anthropology studies patterns of behav ...

from the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

, a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

from the

University of South Carolina The University of South Carolina (USC, SC, or Carolina) is a Public university, public research university in Columbia, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1801 as South Carolina College, It is the flagship of the University of South Car ...

,"Who are the judges?"
, ''Vancouver City Planning Commission Alternative Futures website'', Accessed September 23, 2009. and studied at the Sorbonne, the Millennium Film Institute in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, and the

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: the University of Colorado Boulder, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs, the University of Colorado Denver, and the U ...

."Jim Green, The Tyee Interview"
''

The Tyee The Tyee is an independent daily news website based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It was founded in November 2003 as an alternative to corporate media. Articles in The Tyee focus on politics, culture, and life. The Tyee was founded b ...

'', November 17, 2005.

Career

Early in his career, Green worked as a

and a

driver."Downtown Eastsider brings varied experience to new position on the islands"
, '' Queen Charlotte Observer'', July 16, 2008. Green was an advocate for the city's

Downtown Eastside The Downtown Eastside (DTES) is a list of neighbourhoods in Vancouver, neighbourhood in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. One of the city's oldest neighbourhoods, the DTES is the site of a complex set of social issues, including disproportio ...

and led the development of many

housing projects Public housing, also known as social housing, refers to subsidized or affordable housing provided in buildings that are usually owned and managed by local government, central government, nonprofit organizations or a combination thereof ...

, including the experimental Woodward's building redevelopment designed by architect

Gregory Henriquez Gregory Henriquez (born 1963) is a Canadian architect who has designed community-based mixed-use residential, commercial and institutional projects in Vancouver, Toronto, Calgary and Seattle. He is the managing principal of Henriquez Partners Arc ...

He was a development consultant for developers and non-profit community groups."Jim Green"
, ''

BC Business Canada Wide Media Limited is a publishing company in Western Canada, based in Burnaby, British Columbia. History Canada Wide Media Limited co-founder and CEO Peter Legge purchased a ten-cent magazine in 1976. In 2023 it was bought by the Ali ...

'', November 4, 2008. In 2009 he left his role as CEO of the Misty Isles Economic Development Society to take a position working with Millennium Developments Ltd. on the

2010 Olympic Village The Vancouver Olympic Village (VVL) is a neighbourhood and Olympic Village built by Millennium Development Group in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, originally built for the 2010 Winter Olympics and 2010 Winter Paralympics. The site is lo ...

development in Vancouver."MIEDS chief executive gone"
, '' Queen Charlotte Observer'', January 26, 2009."Olympic Village builder hires Jim Green"
, ''

Vancouver Sun The ''Vancouver Sun'', also known as the ''Sun'', is a daily broadsheet newspaper based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The newspaper is currently published by the Pacific Newspaper Group, a division of Postmedia Network, and is the larg ...

'', January 26, 2009. Green taught

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

and

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...

at the

and Anthropology at

Simon Fraser University Simon Fraser University (SFU) is a Public university, public research university in British Columbia, Canada. It maintains three campuses in Greater Vancouver, respectively located in Burnaby (main campus), Surrey, British Columbia, Surrey, and ...

, and co-founded the University of British Columbia Urban Field School. Green was the 1996 recipient of UBC's Great Trekker Award, given by the students to an alumnus who has achieved distinction in their career. Green was chair of Four Corners Community Savings, which was closed by the Gordon Campbell led BC Government. He served on the board of the

Federation of Canadian Municipalities The Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM, ''Fédération canadienne des municipalités'') is an advocacy group representing over 2000 Canadian municipalities. It is an organization with no formal power but significant ability to influence ...

. Green co-founded the

Portland Hotel Society Portland Hotel Society (PHS) is a Canadian non-profit society created in 1993 to provide advocacy, housing, services, and opportunities, for Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. Its staff support thousands of supportive housing rooms and operate North Ame ...

which operates

Insite Insite is a supervised drug injection site in the Downtown Eastside (DTES) neighbourhood of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada The DTES had 4,700 chronic drug users in 2000 and has been considered to be the centre of an "injection drug epid ...

, the first legal

safe injection site Supervised injection sites (SIS) or drug consumption rooms (DCRs) are a health and social response to drug-related problems. They are fixed or mobile spaces where people who use drugs are provided with sterile drug use equipment and can use illic ...

in North America."Jim Green: The democratic solution"
, ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Newspapers in Canada, Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in Western Canada, western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of more than 6 million in 2024, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on week ...

'', April 9, 2009.

Political career

In 2002 he was elected to

Vancouver City Council Vancouver City Council is the governing body of Vancouver, British Columbia. The council consists of a mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city ...

as a member of the

Coalition of Progressive Electors The Coalition of Progressive Electors (COPE) is a municipal political party in the Canadian city of Vancouver, British Columbia. It has traditionally been associated with tenants, environmentalists, and the labour movement. COPE is generally gu ...

(COPE),"2002 Election Results"
, ''

City of Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. The Met ...

archives'', Accessed September 23, 2009. and subsequently, with mayor

Larry Campbell Larry W. Campbell (born February 28, 1948) is a Canadian politician who was the 37th mayor of Vancouver, Canada, from 2002 until 2005, and a member of the Senate of Canada from 2005 until his retirement in 2023. Before he was mayor, Campbe ...

, councillor

Raymond Louie Raymond Louie (; born 16 January 1965) is a Canadian politician. He is a five-term Vancouver City Councillor. Formerly a member of Coalition of Progressive Electors civic party, Louie broke away and was re-elected in 2005, and again in 2008, 2 ...

, and councillor

Tim Stevenson Tim Stevenson (born 1945) is a Canadian politician and United Church minister. He served as councillor on the Vancouver City Council from 2002 to 2018, initially as a member of the Coalition of Progressive Electors and from 2005 as a member o ...

left to form a new party,

Vision Vancouver Vision Vancouver is a green liberal municipal political party in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Vision was formed in the months leading up to the 2005 municipal election. Formation Vision was founded by former Coalition of Progressi ...

. Under the Vision Vancouver banner, he unsuccessfully ran for mayor in 2005, losing to

Sam Sullivan Sam C. Sullivan (born November 13, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the MLA for Vancouver-False Creek. Previously, he served as the Minister of Communities, Sport, and Cultural Development with responsibility for Translink in the ...

"News What's Next for Jim Green and Vancouver's Civic Left"
''

'', December 5, 2005. by 3,747 votes."Election Summary Report: November 19, 2005"
, ''

archives'', Accessed September 23, 2009. Some blamed voter confusion for his loss,"Almost famous"
, ''

Vancouver Courier The ''Vancouver Courier'' was a Canadian semi-weekly local newspaper published in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, by the Van-Net chain owned by Glacier Media Group. In 2007, it was Canada's largest distributed community newspaper, with a we ...

'', November 27, 2005. as there was an unknown candidate named "James Green" who received 4,273 votes. It was the second time Green had run for mayor unsuccessfully, having been beaten as a member of

COPE A cope ( ("rain coat") or ("cape")) is a liturgical long mantle or cloak, open at the front and fastened at the breast with a band or clasp. It may be of any liturgical colour. A cope may be worn by any rank of the Catholic or Anglican clerg ...

by then- NPA mayor Gordon Campbell in 1990. Six years later, Green again faced Campbell, this time in the 1996 provincial election for the MLA seat in

Vancouver-Point Grey Vancouver-Point Grey is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Canada. It was first contested in the general election of 1933. It was created out of parts of Richmond-Point Grey, South Vancouver and V ...

. Green, a

New Democrat New Democrats may refer to: * New Democratic Party, a social democratic party in Canada * New Democrats (United States), the ideological centrist faction of the Democratic Party ** New Democrat Coalition, the related caucus in the United States H ...

, was defeated by

BC Liberal BC United (BCU), known from 1903 until 2023 as the British Columbia Liberal Party or BC Liberals, is a provincial political party in British Columbia, Canada. The party has been described as conservative, neoliberal, and occupying a centre-right ...

leader and future premier Gordon Campbell 12,637 to 11,074."Statement of Votes Report for Electoral District: Vancouver-Point Grey"
''

Elections BC Elections BC (formally the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer of British Columbia) is a non-partisan office of the British Columbia legislature responsible for conducting provincial and local elections, by-elections, petitions, referendums, p ...

website'', Accessed September 23, 2009. In 2008 Green supported Gregor Robertson in his successful run for mayor of Vancouver.

Death

In February 2012, his family released a brief statement saying he had suffered a serious recurrence of the

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...

he had previously battled. At 06:15 PST on February 28, 2012, Green died following his battle with lung cancer.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Green, Jim 1943 births 2012 deaths American emigrants to Canada Canadian schoolteachers Deaths from cancer in British Columbia Deaths from lung cancer in Canada Vietnam War draft evaders Politicians from Birmingham, Alabama Academic staff of Simon Fraser University University of British Columbia alumni Academic staff of the University of British Columbia American expatriate academics in Canada University of Colorado Boulder alumni University of Paris alumni University of South Carolina alumni Coalition of Progressive Electors councillors Vision Vancouver councillors American expatriates in France 21st-century Canadian municipal councillors