Obituary: Dr. Patricia Monture, Department of Sociology

Dr. Patricia Monture, a professor in the Department of Sociology and academic coordinator of the Aboriginal Justice and Criminology Program, passed away on Wednesday, November 17, 2010 at Royal University Hospital. A Mohawk from the Six Nations Grand River Territory, Dr. Monture will be remembered as a passionate Haudenosaunee mother, lawyer, activist, educator, writer and scholar. Known for being a profoundly aware and critical intellect, and a loyal friend, she adhered to the traditions of her people, the Haudenosaunee, and worked tirelessly as a grassroots advocate.

Dr. Monture is the author of two books, Thunder in my Soul: A Mohawk Woman Speaks (1995), and Journeying Forward: Dreaming First Nations Independence (1999). She edited a recent anthology with Patricia McGuire, First Voices: An Aboriginal Women's Reader (2009). She is the author of numerous peer-reviewed articles, scholarly volumes and reports. Dr. Monture received an honorary doctorate from Athabasca University in June 2008 and from Queen's University in June 2009. She led the way on ideas involving Indigenous theory, intersectional theory, governance, law, responsibility, and social and political inequality. She will be missed by her large family and many friends and colleagues. In lieu of flowers donations can be made to the family in care of Justin Monture, jmonture@gmail.com.