The owner of a Vancouver bookstore that brought on a landmark Supreme Court decision has died.
Jim Deva passed away unexpectedly Sunday (September 21), Little Sister’s bookstore confirmed through Twitter.
The prominent LGBTQ activist is probably best known for fighting Canada Customs’ (now the Canadian Border Services Agency) efforts to stop products from reaching his West End bookstore, which was founded in 1983.
Little Sister’s went to court over the issue for the first time in 1986. The store was also the target of three bombings in 1987, 1988 and 1992.
Deva told Business in Vancouver in May the court case cost him about $100,000.
In 1996, the Supreme Court of B.C. ruled Canada Customs was discriminating against the bookstore. The Supreme Court of Canada later upheld the decision in 2000.
West End MLA Spencer Chandra Herbert took to Facebook to remember Deva.
“It is so hard to process the loss of a man so full of passion, love, and life. A man that inspired so us in the battle for liberty, equality, free speech, and above all love,” he wrote.
Deva is survived by his partner Bruce Smythe.
Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson said in a statement he was shocked and saddened to hear of Deva’s death.
“He was an inspiration to Vancouver and all Canadians, and his irrepressible courage and tireless advocacy for equal rights and free expression played an enormous role in shaping the city that Vancouver is today,” Robertson’s statement said.
“As Mayor, it was an honour and a privilege to march with Jim each year at Vancouver Pride. He was a champion for the LGBTTQ community, a kind heart who spoke up for the marginalized, and a leader whose uncompromising commitment to human rights echoed far beyond Vancouver to the highest courts of the land.”
