Shawn Syms (born 1970) is a

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 ...

writer and activist on

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

issues and other aspects of progressive politics based 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 ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

. From 1988 until 1992, he was one of the editors and publishers of ''

Rites Rail India Technical and Economic Service Limited, abbreviated as RITES Ltd, is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Indian Railways, Ministry of Railways, Government of India. It is an engineering consultancy corporation, specializing in the field ...

'', a

monthly magazine of

queer ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are not heterosexual or cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against those with same-sex desires or relationships in the late 19th century. Beginning in the lat ...

history, politics and culture. Syms's work for ''Rites'' included political and cultural analysis that was referenced in such books as ''The Lesbian and Gay Studies Reader''Abelove H, Barale MA, Halperin DM, eds., ''The Lesbian and Gay Studies Reader.'' Routledge, 1993, page 43. and ''Global Sports Sponsorship'',Amis JM, Cornwell, BT, eds., ''Global Sports Sponsorship.'' Berg, 2005, page 282. and reprinted in the respectedHoffman A
"An Army of Ex Lovers"
/ref> left-of-centre LGBT weekly '' Gay Community News''. During that time, Syms was also active in the political organization AIDS Action NOW!, which fought for access to treatment for people living with

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 ...

. In 1997 and 1998, he was publisher,Cudmore, D
"The Little Gay Paper That Grew"
''Ryerson Review of Journalism,'' Summer 1996. for

Pink Triangle Press Pink Triangle Press is a Canadian organization which specializes in LGBT media including publishing, online interactive media, and television. PTP's main asset is the LGBT news website ''Daily Xtra'', a continuation of the company's former print t ...

, of ''Canadian Male'', a short-lived gay men's sexual magazine characterized by very diverse contents and high production values. Syms co-wrote the sexual-advice column "Carnal Queeries" in Toronto's ''

Xtra! ''Xtra Magazine'' (formerly ''DailyXtra'' and ''Xtra!'') is an LGBTQ-focused digital publication and former print newspaper published by Pink Triangle Press in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The publication is a continuation of the company's former pr ...

'' for several years. Syms was a copy editor at ''Fuse Magazine'' for over a decade and served on its board of directors for 13 years in the 1990s and early 2000s. He blogged on political affairs for ''

This Magazine ''This Magazine'' is an independent alternative Canadian political magazine. History and profile The magazine was launched "by a gang of school activists" in April 1966 as ''This Magazine Is About Schools'', a journal covering political issues ...

'' from 2007 to 2008. From 2007 to 2010, he wrote a regular column on sexuality, sex work, drug use and harm reduction for xtra.ca called "Free Agent." As a journalist, Syms has specialized in covering medical conditions transmitted through drug use and sexual practices, including

hepatitis Hepatitis is inflammation of the liver tissue. Some people or animals with hepatitis have no symptoms, whereas others develop yellow discoloration of the skin and whites of the eyes (jaundice), poor appetite, vomiting, tiredness, abdominal pa ...

herpes Herpes simplex is a viral infection caused by the herpes simplex virus. Infections are categorized based on the part of the body infected. Oral herpes involves the face or mouth. It may result in small blisters in groups often called cold s ...

HPV Human papillomavirus infection (HPV infection) is caused by a DNA virus from the '' Papillomaviridae'' family. Many HPV infections cause no symptoms and 90% resolve spontaneously within two years. In some cases, an HPV infection persists and re ...

and HIV/AIDS. His 2009 extensive examination of the legal and biocultural implications of criminalizing HIV transmission was described by criminalization expert Edwin J. Bernard as a "piece de resistance"Bernard EJ
"Canada: Xtra publishes its anti-criminalisation piece-de-resistance".
/ref> and was one of the few pieces by a non-lawyer included by the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network's resource kit for lawyers involved in cases related to HIV and the criminal law. In 2008, Syms was an invited speaker on the topic at the Health and Human Rights Conference at Queen's University.HHRC2008
" HHRC 2008 Speakers"
/ref> Other advocacy journalism by Syms regarding gay

transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through tr ...

men has been lauded by writer and sex-worker advocate Sasha Von Bon Bon,Bon Bon S von
"Parts and Recreation"
/ref> and translated into French.Syms, S
"Des hommes trans qui aiment des hommes gay qui aiment des hommes trans"
/ref> His coverage of the forced sterilization of a Chilean HIV-positive woman has been cited in the ''Harvard Human Rights Journal''.Nair P
"Litigating against the Forced Sterilization of HIV-Positive Women: Recent Developments in Chile and Namibia"
volume 23, page 228. Syms's fiction writing was nominatedMiller, M
"Interview with Shawn Syms"
/ref> for the 2009

Journey Prize The Journey Prize (officially called The Writers' Trust of Canada McClelland & Stewart Journey Prize) is a Canadian literary award, presented annually by McClelland and Stewart and the Writers' Trust of Canada for the best short story published by a ...

, and was twiceSaints and Sinners Literary Festival website
"Fiction and Playwriting Contest Finalists"
short-listedSaints and Sinners Literary Festival website
"And the Winner Is"
for the short-fiction competition associated with the

Saints and Sinners Literary Festival Saints and Sinners LGBTQ+ Literary Festival is an alternative literary festival specializing in LGBTQ+ literature. It is held in various locations around the French Quarter neighborhood in the city of New Orleans, Louisiana each March. Overview ...

. His essays have twice been published in books by

Arsenal Pulp Press Arsenal Pulp Press is a Canadian independent book publishing company, based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The company publishes a broad range of titles in both fiction and non-fiction, focusing primarily on underrepresented genres such as und ...

. Also a widely published book critic, his writing has appeared in thirty periodicals and journals. In 2013, he edited and published ''Friend. Follow. Text.'', an

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...

of short stories about interactions through

social media Social media are interactive media technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. While challenges to the definition of ''social medi ...

. His debut short story collection, ''Nothing Looks Familiar'', was published by Arsenal Pulp in September 2014.''

Plenitude The principle of plenitude asserts that the universe contains all possible forms of existence. Arthur Lovejoy, a historian of ideas, was the first to trace the history of this philosophically important principle explicitly. Lovejoy distinguishes ...

'', Issue 4 (Spring 2014).

References

External links

''Legal Resource Kit of the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network''

''Xtra.ca Free Agent column''

''The Journey Prize Stories 21''

''First Person Queer'', Arsenal Pulp Press, 2007

''I Like It Like That'', Arsenal Pulp Press, 2009

''website of Shawn Syms''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Syms, Shawn 1970 births Living people Canadian newspaper journalists Canadian male journalists Canadian male short story writers Canadian gay writers Journalists from Toronto Canadian LGBT journalists Canadian literary critics Canadian magazine editors Writers from Toronto Canadian anthologists 21st-century Canadian short story writers 21st-century Canadian male writers 21st-century Canadian LGBT people