Book Launch: Libby Davies' "Outside, In: A Political Memoir"

Vancouver activist and politician Libby Davies joined us on May 22, 2019 for the launch of her memoir, Outside In, featuring a conversation between Davies and Am Johal, plus remarks from Karen Ward, Christine Boyle and Rodney Watson, and followed by a reception in the World Arts Centre.

Free entry, with books available to purchase from Book Warehouse. Kindly hosted and sponsored by SFU Woodwards, in partnership with Between the Lines Books.

“In a time of peak cynicism about the political class, Libby has always been the exception. For decades, she has been a human bridge between the passions of activism and the pragmatism of the electoral sphere. It is no surprise then, that this book is quintessential Libby: principled and brave, full of energy and generosity.”

– Naomi Klein, author of This Changes Everything

For more than four decades, Libby Davies has worked steadfastly for social justice both inside parliament and out on the streets. At nineteen, Davies became a community organizer in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. She went on to serve in municipal and then federal politics, advancing to the role of Deputy Leader of the New Democratic Party.

Looking back on her remarkable life and career with humour and honesty, Davies addresses the challenges of her work against homelessness, championing sex workers’ rights, and ending drug prohibition. With candid reflections on her own work and those of her colleagues and activist allies, she illuminates the humanity at the core of each issue. Davies’ astute political analysis offers an insider’s perspective that never loses touch with the people she fights alongside. Outside In is both a political and personal memoir of Davies’ forty years of work at the intersection of political and social change.

Libby Davies is a former Canadian politician from British Columbia. She moved to Vancouver in 1968 and served as a city councillor from 1982 to 1993, then represented the federal riding of Vancouver East from 1997 to 2015 under the New Democratic Party banner. She was named a Member of the Order of Canada in 2016 and was Canada's first openly lesbian MP.

Christine Boyle is a newly elected Councillor with OneCity Vancouver. She is a community organizer, a climate justice activist, and an ordained United Church Minister. She previously did national climate justice organizing among diverse faith communities, including at COP21 and at the Vatican. She also led Strategic Communications at the Columbia Institute, supporting progressive locally elected leaders across the country. She has a teenager and a preschooler.

Rodney Watson Jr., U.S. Army Iraq war Veteran who completed a one year deployment to Mosul, Iraq. Who then lived 7 years in a in a downtown eastside Vancouver church after being granted sanctuary to allow him to remain in his Canadian son's life. The reason for his time in sanctuary was due to the past Conservative government under Stephen Harper who wanted Mr. Watson's deportation from Canada. After Mr. Watson made his own personal assessment of the war. He came to Canada in protest of the unjust war. A soldier with a good conscience who was finally granted permanent residency after his 7 year long battle to remain with his Canadian family. 

karen ward is an artist and activist who was a former board member of VANDU and a former collective member at Gallery Gachet. karen advises on drug policy and poverty reduction at the City of Vancouver.