Glen Elder unexpectedly passed away on 21 May 2009, at the age of 42. He was our friend, our colleague and an ardent voice for the marginalized, the dominated and the less powerful. Glen's contributions to the fields of Gender Studies, Queer Studies, African Studies, and Political and Urban Geography were many and important. He was deeply respected for the empirically grounded and theoretically sophisticated way that his scholarship advanced geographic research on the particularities and intersections of gender, race, sexuality, class, culture and place. That so many sub-disciplines within geography could claim him as their own is a testament of the versatility and transcendence that he had achieved through his work.
A South African by birth, Glen received undergraduate degrees from the University of Witwatersrand in 1987 and 1989 before migrating to the United States where he was awarded a Masters degree (1993) and in 1995, a PhD from Clark University. He joined the Department of Geography at the University of Vermont as a Visiting Assistant Professor from 1995, became an Assistant Professor in 1998, and an Associate Professor in 2002. At the University of Vermont he held the position of Director of the African Studies Program from 1996 to 1998; Chair of the Department of Geography from 2005 to 2009; and Interim Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences from 2008 to 2009. Glen was to become the Associate Dean of Arts and Sciences in July 2009, and was being considered for promotion to Full Professor when he died.
Glen's research on the gendered geographies of South Africa's migrant labor system provided important insights into the ways that bodies, sex and erotics played out in South Africa during apartheid and after. In Hostels, Sexuality, and the Apartheid Legacy: Malevolent Geographies, published by Ohio University Press in 2003, Glen drew on feminist and queer theory to examine how the heterospatial logic of apartheid in South Africa continued to produce spaces that marginalized and excluded sexual, gendered and raced others. Through a study of hostels and the refusal of policy makers to recognize the presence and the needs of black migrant women within them, Glen highlighted the importance of locating ‘sex at the center of inquiry’ in order to ask new questions about familiar South African worlds and landscapes (p. x). By locating the politics of sex and gender at the center of South Africa evolving social structure, Glen's research highlighted the role of contemporary social policy in the reproduction of gender, race and sexual inequalities. That Glen's research made an important and pioneering contribution to scholarship and policy in South Africa is without doubt, but the recent request of South African government to archive his original interviews highlights the extent to which his scholarship was recognized and appreciated outside the academy.
Glen's commitment to social justice, anti-racist and feminist research was evident in the way that he consistently sought to challenge and disrupt boundaries. By bringing feminist and queer theory into South African political economy, for example, he challenged the disciplinary boundaries of South African studies. His many journal articles and book chapters exploring the relationships among racism, heteronormativity, masculinity, and gay identity in South Africa and the United States also disrupted boundaries by demonstrating that queer theory need not be limited to the politics and bodies of gay white men. At the time of his death, Glen had already turned his attentions to yet another border and had begun a project on the effects of border policies since 9/11 on the economic, social and political realities of border communities. Glen was excited about this project and, in particular, the documentary that he had made and presented at the AAG meetings in Las Vegas entitled ‘45˚ North: Life, Space and Change on the US–Canadian Border’. He was also the narrator in a theater production of ‘Border Stories’ at the Flynn Theater in Burlington, Vermont.
Glen was a person whose politics were reflected in the way he conducted his life. He was keenly aware of the political responsibilities that came with being an intellectual and sought to make sure that the privileges that came from political liberty, freedom of expression and access to information were used to assist those without. Glen was a generous colleague who always sought to open up spaces for young queer academics, academics of color, African scholars and women academics at both the University of Vermont and in the broader field of Geography. His willingness to serve the academy and his wider community is evident in the number of administrative positions that he held throughout his academic career. He was the coordinator of the Northeastern Workshop on Southern Africa between 1998 and 2008; Founding co-Chair of the Space and Sexuality Group of the Association of American Geographers and a board member of the Urban Geography Specialty Groups. At UVM, he was co-Chair of the President's Commission on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered Equity and brought in and supported many students, post-docs and faculty. Glen also served as Board Chair of Vermont CARES (Committee for AIDS Resources, Education, and Services) and the Samara Foundation of Vermont dedicated to improving the quality of life for lesbian gay, bisexual, and transgendered citizens.
Glen's dedication and commitment to empowering others was particularly evident in his relationship with his students. He was an extraordinary and innovative teacher and mentor, winning UVM's highest teaching award in 2003 and in 2005, the Dean's Lecture Award for Outstanding Scholarship and Teaching. He took students on field trips to South Africa, and on one of these trips even had the opportunity to introduce his students to Nelson Mandela. He supported students outside the classroom as the faculty advisor to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered, Questioning and Allies Students.
For those who knew Glen, he will be remembered as an extraordinary intellectual who combined his passion for social justice with great wit, and tremendous sense of style. He was a compassionate and thoughtful teacher, colleague, friend and partner who always had time to listen and to help. Glen lived a full and meaningful life that we celebrate and mourn only that we had him for such a short time. Glen was predeceased by his sister Shona and recently his mother, Mavis Elder. He is survived by his partner Mick Conley, his father Peter Elder, and many friends and colleagues. Glen Elder will be missed greatly.