Sharmarke Dubow
Sharmarke cast a vote for the first time on October 20, 2018 and was elected Victoria City Councilor – the first Somali-Canadian elected to City Council in Canada and as the first black city councilor to be elected in Victoria in 152 years. Sharmarke Dubow is an award-winning community leader with extensive experience serving refugee and immigrant populations. He holds a degree in Business Technology from the University of Cape Breton, and has worked at the Inter-cultural Association and the Victoria Immigrant Refugee Services Centre. At the national level, Sharmarke sat on the Board of the Canadian Council for Refugees and he also served as current co-chair of the Settlement and Integration Working Group. He has been active on various organizations and groups, including the Youth Crime Prevention Steering Committee and the Victoria Tenant Action Group. Sharmarke’s passion and commitment to diversity, inclusion, and building equitable, inclusive and compassionate communities and his work for marginalized communities earned recognition and respected community leader and a voice for bold and courageous policies. His outstanding activism has garnered him various awards and recognitions including Victoria Community Leadership Awards 2017. Before moving to Canada, he was human rights defender and worked with migrants in North Africa. He is tireless in his efforts to build relationships, collaborate and bring people together to improve the wellbeing of communities. Follow him on Twitter @deardubow or Instagram @sharmarke.dubow.
Noteworthy mentioning: Sharmarke Dubow is a former refugee fled civil war in Somalia at the age of 8, he spent 20 years seeking safe haven until Canada offered home in 2012.