Emery Barnes

Who was Emery Barnes?

Emery Barnes, OBC was a Canadian football player and Canadian politician.

Born in Louisiana and raised in Oregon, Barnes was a gifted athlete, and was an alternate hi-jumper for the 1952 US Olympic Track and Field team. He played football at the University of Oregon and was selected by the National Football League's Green Bay Packers in the 1954 NFL Draft He played 2 games for the Packers in 1956, but had much more success in the Canadian Football League with the B.C. Lions. He played 3 years, from 1962 to 1964, for a total of 30 games and was champion in 1964 He also received a Bachelor of Social Work degree from the University of British Columbia.

Barnes worked as a social worker before entering politics. First elected to the British Columbia legislature in 1972, and re-elected four consecutive times, he served the people of British Columbia until 1996. Barnes and fellow NDP MLA Rosemary Brown were the first black politicians elected to a legislative office in British Columbia. He was particularly concerned with issues relating to social justice, human rights, and poverty.