Lawrence "Larry" Ralph Shaben (March 20, 1935 – September 6, 2008) was a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

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 ...

of Lebanese descent and the first Muslim Cabinet Minister in Canada. He was also one of the first Muslims to be elected to higher office in North America. He held a seat in the

Legislative Assembly of Alberta The Legislative Assembly of Alberta is the deliberative assembly of the province of Alberta, Canada. It sits in the Alberta Legislature Building in Edmonton. Since 2012 the Legislative Assembly has had 87 members, elected first past the post f ...

from 1975 to 1989 sitting with the governing Progressive Conservative Caucus. During his time in office he served as a cabinet minister in the governments of Premier Peter Lougheed and Don Getty occupying various portfolios from 1979 to 1989.

Early life

Lawrence Ralph Shaben was born on March 20, 1935, in Hanna,

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

The family moved to Edmonton in the mid-1940s after North America's first

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

was opened there. Shaben went to Eastwood High School before going on to the

University of Alberta The University of Alberta (also known as U of A or UAlberta, ) is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta, and Henry Marshall Tory, t ...

. He left university early to join the workforce, although his daughter admitted in a book that he goofed off so much in college that he flunked out. Shaben married Alma Saddy in 1960 and they had five children by 1966. He moved his family to

High Prairie High Prairie is a town in northern Alberta, Canada within Big Lakes County. It is located at the junction of Alberta Highway 2, Highway 2 and Alberta Highway 749, Highway 749, approximately northeast of Valleyview, Alberta, Valleyview and wes ...

and bought a general store.

Political career

Shaben got his first start in politics by serving on the municipal council for the town of High Prairie. He moved his career to the provincial level when he ran for a seat in the Alberta Legislature in the 1975 Alberta general election. He ran in the electoral district of Lesser Slave Lake as a candidate for the Progressive Conservative party. He won the electoral district defeating incumbent Dennis Barton and a third candidate by a wide margin to pick up the seat for his party. With his win Shaben was the first

Arab Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...

elected in Alberta and among the first

Muslims Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

elected to higher political office in North America. Shaben ran for a second term in office in the 1979 Alberta general election. He faced a tougher race, losing a little bit of his popular vote from the previous election against three other candidates including future MLA Dan Backs. Shaben held his district and was returned to the Legislature. After the election Premier Peter Lougheed appointed Shaben to the Executive Council of Alberta. He became Minister of Utilities and Telephones. His appointment would make him the first Muslim cabinet minister in Canada. He would run for a third term in office in the 1982 general election with ministerial advantage. Shaben would easily hold his district defeating the four other candidates with a much larger popular vote and margin of victory. Lougheed shuffled his cabinet after the election. Shaben became the Minister of Housing. In 1984, Shaben survived a plane crash near

that killed fellow MLA and Alberta NDP leader Grant Notley and five other passengers. He held that portfolio after Don Getty became Premier in 1985. Shaben would run a fourth term in office in the 1986 general election. He would face a hotly contested fight against New Democrat candidate Bert Dube. Despite his popular vote dropping Shaben was able to hang onto his seat. Getty made his first cabinet shuffle after the election and appointed Shaben to his final portfolio as Minister of Economic Development and Trade. He held that portfolio until he retired at dissolution of the Assembly in 1989.

Late life

Shaben was severely beaten by a hitchhiker and wound up hospitalized in 1986. Following 9/11, Shaben became active in promoting greater tolerance and understanding of Muslims in Canada. He was later instrumental in establishing the Edmonton Islamic Academy and a Chair In Islamic Studies at the University of Alberta. In 2005 he was appointed a federal citizenship judge. Shaben died on September 6, 2008, following a long bout with cancer. His funeral was attended by more than 1,000 people and numerous politicians including three provincial Premiers.

References

External links

Legislative Assembly of Alberta Members Listing
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shaben, Larry 1935 births 2008 deaths Canadian Muslims Deaths from cancer in Alberta Members of the Executive Council of Alberta People from Hanna, Alberta Politicians from Edmonton Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta MLAs Survivors of aviation accidents or incidents University of Alberta alumni 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta Canadian citizenship judges Canadian people of Lebanese descent

Early life

Political career

Late life

See also

References

External links