Jack Shields

Who was Jack Shields?

John Wendele Shields was a Progressive Conservative party member of the House of Commons of Canada. He was a businessman and teacher by career.

Shields was born in Grande Prairie, Alberta. He died aged 74 of heart failure following bladder surgery.

He represented the Alberta riding of Athabasca where he was first elected in the 1980 federal election and re-elected in 1984 and again in 1988. He served in the 32nd, 33rd and 34th Canadian Parliaments.

In 1991, Shields incurred controversy for allegedly shouting "Shut up, Sambo" to Howard McCurdy, the sole black member of Parliament. Shields denied ever making the comments.

Shields left federal politics after his defeat in the 1993 federal election to David Chatters of the Reform Party.

Shields served with the Canadian Army in Korea. He left the military in 1958 to complete high school and went on to earn a degree in education from the University of Alberta.