College professor Paul Longmore, author and intrepid anti assisted suicide and disability rights activist, has died. From the press release:
We are deeply saddened to convey the news that Dr. Paul Longmore, Professor of History at San Francisco State and an active member of the Californians Against Assisted Suicide coalition, passed away yesterday. Paul, a man with a significant disability, was a brilliant leader and luminary in the disability rights movement and, in particular, in the struggle against assisted suicide. He leaves a legacy of very significant contributions, both activist and scholarly, including several books, including Why I Burned My Book, and Other Essays on Disability which has some excellent chapters on the assisted suicide issue. Our thoughts and prayers are with Dr. Longmore’s family during this difficult time. Paul was a true asset in the fight against assisted suicide and he will be dearly missed. Memorial plans will be announced in the coming days.
I worked closely with Paul in my early days of anti assisted suicide advocacy. We did editorial meetings together and shared many a dais. He was brilliant, intrepid, and righteous. He will indeed be missed.
Update: Stephen Drake of Not Dead Yet has more details.