“Midnight Sun”, Sgt. Dave Van Norman

Our 2021 feature print comes at a time of healing, reconciliation, and introspection: we are hopeful to emerge into a more thoughtful and kind post-Covid reality. Enormous gratitude to Sgt. Sturko for her work and permission to offer this incredible photograph.

June 21, 1950, Looking towards Bylot Island from Pond Inlet, on the north coast of Baffin Island, Nunavut. Taken by Sgt. Dave Van Norman, who was a great advocate for the Inuit people during his 17-year career defined by his time in the north. He was ousted from the RCMP in the 1964 purge of LGBTQ+ members, and unfortunately died in 1988 before the government of Canada officially apologised. His great-niece, Sgt Elenore Sturko, spearheads his legacy through her book Paanialuk: The Tall One, Remembering Sergeant Dave Van Norman. It is a fascinating and intimate recounting of his posting at Pond Inlet, with many of his spectacular photos included. All proceeds go to the Van Norman family foundation’s indigenous reconciliation efforts and their many front-line support initiatives.

This digital download comes with permission to print for personal use, and all proceeds also go to the Van Norman Family Foundation.