[Photograph of Ujjal Dosanjh and Sue Hammell at a VLMFSS event]

Photograph of Ujjal Dosanjh addressing the audience with Sue Hammell standing behind, at an event organized by the Vancouver & Lower Mainland Multicultural Family Support Services Society (VLMFSS).

Ujjal Dosanjh is a Canadian lawyer, civil rights activist, and politician. Born in Panjab, India in 1947, Dosanjh emigrated to England at the age of 17 and came to Canada four years later, in 1968. He started off at a Vancouver sawmill, but when a back injury hindered his career at the mill, he enrolled at Langara College and completed a degree in political science at Simon Fraser University. He earned a law degree at the University of British Columbia and established a law practice in Vancouver in 1979. First elected as MLA for Vancouver-Kensington in 1991, Dosanjh twice served as Caucus Chair and also chaired the Select Standing Committee on Parliamentary Reform, Ethical Conduct, Standing Orders and Private Bills. Dosanjh was sworn in as British Columbia's 33rd Premier and Canada's first Indo-Canadian Premier on February 24, 2000, serving until 2001. He had previously served as Minister of Government Services and Minister Responsible for Multiculturalism, Human Rights, Sports and Immigration in 1995, and served as Attorney General from August 1995 to February 2000. He was also the leader of the provincial New Democratic Party (NDP) and later served as a Member of Parliament with the Liberal Party. A long time human rights activist, his past community involvements include: South Vancouver Neighbourhood House, MOSAIC, the B.C. Multicultural Society and the B.C. Civil Liberties Association. In 1977 he helped set up the first farm workers' legal information services while he was chair of the Labour Advocacy Research Association. Throughout his career, Dosanjh has been a strong advocate for social justice, healthcare, and public policy issues.

Sue Hammell is a former Member of the Legislative Assembly for Surrey-Green Timbers, serving multiple terms since 1991. She held key roles, including Minister for Women's Equality, and co-founded the Minerva Foundation for BC Women. Hammell also worked internationally to support female leaders and served as Executive Director of the Surrey Aboriginal Society.

The Vancouver & Lower Mainland Multicultural Family Support Services Society (VLMFSS) is a non-profit organization pioneered to provide culturally responsive, trauma-informed, confidential and free services with immigrant/refugee women and children facing the challenges of family violence in more than 20 languages. VLMFSS was established in September 1991 by Shashi Assanand who became the first Executive Director. The Ministry for Children and Families Development (formerly known as the Ministry of Social Services) approved a proposal from the Vancouver Society of Immigrant and Visible Minority Women to create a culturally sensitive and multilingual agency dedicated to assisting immigrant, visible minority, refugee, and women without immigration status and their families who face family violence / gender-based violence (GBV) / intimate partner violence (IPV). VLMFSS was conceived within the kitchens of a group of immigrant women who held a strong passion for advocating on behalf of racialized immigrant women and children affected by family violence/GBV/IPV. VLMFSS is based in Burnaby, British Columbia.