Michael Lynch (1944 – July 9, 1991) was an American-born

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

professor, journalist, and activist,Robert Aldrich and Garry Wotherspoon, ''Who's Who in Contemporary Gay and Lesbian History'', vol. 2: ''From World War II to the Present Day''.

Routledge Routledge () is a British multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanities, behavioural science, education, law, and ...

, 2005. . most noted as a pioneer of

gay studies Queer studies, sexual diversity studies, or LGBT studies is the education of topics relating to sexual orientation and gender identity usually focusing on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, gender dysphoria, asexual, queer, questioning, int ...

in Canadian academia and as an important builder of many significant

LGBT rights Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality. Notably, , 33 ...

and

HIV/AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...

organizations in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

. Born and raised in Harnett County,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

,"Inventory of the Michael Lynch Papers (Fonds)"

Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives The ArQuives: Canada's LGBTQ2+ Archives, formerly known as the Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives, is a Canadian non-profit organization, founded in 1973 as the Canadian Gay Liberation Movement Archives. The ArQuives acquires, preserves, and pro ...

, November 14, 1996. he studied at

Goddard College Goddard College is a progressive education private liberal arts low-residency college with three locations in the United States: Plainfield, Vermont; Port Townsend, Washington; and Seattle, Washington. The college offers undergraduate and gra ...

and the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is org ...

. He wrote his doctoral dissertation on the poetry of

Wallace Stevens Wallace Stevens (October 2, 1879 – August 2, 1955) was an American modernist poet. He was born in Reading, Pennsylvania, educated at Harvard and then New York Law School, and spent most of his life working as an executive for an insurance compa ...

. He moved to Toronto in 1971 with his then-wife Gail Jones, and from 1971 to 1990 he taught in the Department of English at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

at both the main and Erindale College campuses."Out & Proud"
''U of T Magazine'', Summer 2009. After coming out as a

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

man in 1973, Lynch was a writer and a contributing editor for ''

The Body Politic ''The Body Politic'' was a Canadian monthly magazine, which was published from 1971 to 1987.

''. In 1974, he taught the first gay studies course offered at a Canadian university, through the University of Toronto's School of Continuing Education. He was a founding member of the Toronto chapter of

Gay Alliance Toward Equality The Gay Alliance Toward Equality, or GATE, was one of the first Canadian gay liberation groups.Ed Jackson and Stan Persky, ''Flaunting It! 1964-1982: A Decade of Gay Journalism from The Body Politic''. Pink Triangle Press, 1982. Formed in sp ...

and the

Gay Academic Union The Gay Academic Union (GAU) was a group of LGBT academics who aimed at making the academia more amenable to the LGBT community in the United States. It was formed in April 1973, just four years after the Stonewall riots, held 4 yearly conferences ...

. In 1980, he convened the first academic conference on the topic of

Walt Whitman Walter Whitman (; May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892) was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among t ...

's 1880 visit to

London, Ontario London (pronounced ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River, approximate ...

. He helped found the Toronto Centre for Lesbian and Gay Studies, which continues to offer an annual academic grant in his name. Lynch was a committed AIDS activist from the dawn of the AIDS crisis in 1981 until his death in 1991, including as a founding member of AIDS Action Now!,"Gay Activist Michael Lynch Helped Found AIDS Groups". ''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...

'', July 11, 1991. the AIDS Committee of Toronto and the AIDS Memorial in Toronto's Barbara Hall Park. In 1989 he published the poetry collection ''These Waves of Dying Friends''. At the time of his death, he had an unfinished gay studies manuscript, ''The Age of Adhesiveness: From Friendship to Homosexuality'', in development. The book was an expansion of an earlier academic paper, for which he won Crompton-Noll Award from the Lesbian and Gay Caucus of the Modern Languages Association in 1981. He also served as the editor of the Lesbian and Gay Caucus's ''Gay Studies Newsletter''.

Honours and awards

In honour of his role as a significant contributor to LGBT culture and history in Canada, a portrait of Lynch by

Gerald Hannon Gerald Hannon (July 10, 1944 – May 9, 2022) was a Canadian journalist whose work appeared in major Canadian magazines and newspapers.Robert Aldrich and Garry Wotherspoon, eds., ''Who's Who in Contemporary Gay and Lesbian History''. Routledge, 2 ...

is held by The ArQuives: Canada's LGBTQ2+ Archives' National Portrait Collection. A biography of Lynch, ''AIDS Activist: Michael Lynch and the Politics of Community'', was published by Ann Silversides in 2003."AIDS Activist: Michael Lynch and the Politics of Community, by Ann Silversides"
''

Quill & Quire ''Quill & Quire'' is a Canadian magazine about the book and publishing industry. The magazine was launched in 1935 and has an average circulation of 5,000 copies per issue, with a publisher-claimed readership of 25,000. ''Quill & Quire'' reviews ...

'', August 2003.

References

External links

Michael Lynch fonds
- Archival records at The ArQuives: Canada's LGBTQ2+ Archives {{DEFAULTSORT:Lynch, Michael 1944 births 1991 deaths 20th-century Canadian poets 20th-century Canadian male writers AIDS-related deaths in Canada American emigrants to Canada Canadian male poets Canadian non-fiction writers Canadian gay writers Goddard College alumni Canadian LGBT journalists LGBT people from North Carolina Canadian LGBT poets Canadian LGBT rights activists LGBT studies academics People from Harnett County, North Carolina Writers from North Carolina Writers from Toronto University of Iowa alumni University of Toronto faculty Canadian male non-fiction writers Gay academics 20th-century non-fiction writers 20th-century LGBT people Gay poets