Anna was a committed feminist and social justice activist who used her talents and intellect to work for social change. A graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School in 1980, she was called to the Bar in Ontario in 1982 and received a Master’s of Law in 1993. At the time of her death, Anna was head of Legal Studies at Athabasca University and was an expert in equality rights, child welfare, children’s rights, and Aboriginal rights. In 1996-97, she was the Belzberg Lecturer in Constitutional Law at the Faculty of Law, University of Alberta. Anna was a founding member of the Arab and Jewish Women’s Peace Coalition, an Edmonton-based group that promotes dialogue and peace between Arabs and Jews locally, nationally and internationally.
Anna was a strong supporter of LEAF and served on the National Legal Committee. Her Master’s thesis in the Faculty of Law at the University of Alberta focused on LEAF and feminism in law. (The thesis is available in the University of Alberta Law Library: see “The Disruptive Feminist Voice in Law,” KF 478 Z9 P385 1993.)
Anna passed away at age 47 in 2002, following a battle with cancer. To honour her memory, a group of friends created a memorial fund. The fund contributed to costs associated with the LEAF Edmonton Persons Day Breakfast for 5 years, and during those years, the PDB lecture was titled “The Anna Sari Pellatt memorial lecture”.
