Joan Phillip, the NDP MLA for Vancouver-Strathcona and wife of Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, has died. 

The UBCIC released a statement saying Phillip, also known as Amshen, died peacefully surrounded by her family on Friday afternoon.

She was 74. While an exact cause of death was not stated, the UBCIC asked people donate to the B.C. Cancer Society in lieu of sending flowers.

“British Columbia lost a powerful and respected leader when Joan Amshen Phillip died earlier today,” said B.C. Premier David Eby in a written statement.

Eby said the NDP caucus and staff are grieving alongside Phillip’s family.

Earlier this year, Eby said that Phillip was “very ill” and that her colleagues were all praying for her. 

He called Phillip a “hugely respected member of many communities” and a “loved and valued” colleague of those in the legislature from across party lines.

Phillip, an Indigenous leader, was credited by Eby as one of the reasons why the NDP halted its plans to suspend sections of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA).

She was first elected in Vancouver in a 2023 byelection, and won again in B.C.’s general election the following year.

‘Impact was nationwide’

Judith Sayers, president of the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council, said Phillip’s willingness to vote against the B.C. NDP caucus on the matter of repealing DRIPA showed her principles.

“Her impact was nationwide,” said Sayers. “She always pursued the best possible solutions for First Nations and Indigenous people in this country.” 

Sayers said she knew Phillip for about 40 years.

Whether it was as a member of the Penticton Indian Band council or as an MLA, Sayers said Phillip poured her heart into her work.

Sayers also remembered Phillip as a dedicated, proud mother who wanted to show her children everything about their culture and language.

A flood of tributes poured in across social media, remembering Phillip and lauding her legacy as a politician, advocate and a kind soul.

“She spent a lifetime at the front of the fight for justice,” said federal NDP Leader Avi Lewis. “Now, it is up to all of us to carry her powerful legacy forward.”

A storied past

Phillip was the granddaughter of Chief Dan George, a Tsleil-Waututh actor, poet and public speaker.

In her role as MLA, she served as parliamentary secretary for community development and non-profits. 

Before her time as an MLA, Phillip worked as a youth counsellor at Britannia Secondary School and as education and program director at the Aboriginal Friendship Centre.

She served as a councillor and lands manager for the Penticton Indian Band, of which she was a member.

Prior to provincial politics, she ran federally for the NDP in 2019 and 2021, but was not elected.

She has five surviving children, 15 grandchildren, and one great-grandchild, according to her legislature profile.