Stephen Ellams, 1950-2005

Canadian Anarcho-Communist Editor, Writer, Thinker

It is with great sadness that we learned of the recent death of an
anarchist activist, writer & thinker, Stephen (Steve) Ellams. He died
suddenly from a heart attack in Toronto, age 54 on January 15, 2005.

Born in Liverpool, England, Steve's family moved to Toronto when he was a
teenager. His love of reading lead him to discover the world of anarchist
thought. Steve considered himself an anarcho-communist, and was one of the
founders & editors of the Toronto based journal for the Anarchist
Communist Federation (ACF), The North American Anarchist
(from the late
1970's to early 1980's). He wrote brilliant editorials under the pen name
Lazarus Jones, and agitated tirelessly for a unified North American
anarchist movement.After the ACF folded, Steve, with other comrades,
established and edited another key Canadian anarchist paper called
Strike. The paper folded in 1985.

Steve relocated to Montreal in 1981 with his partner Mado, and their young
daughter Isabella, to work as an editor at Black Rose Books. During his
brief time in Montreal (1981-1985), Steve was quite active in the city's
English anarchist scene. He worked on the journal Our Generation,
volunteered at The Librairie Alternative anarchist bookshop and
participated in local anarchist events. Steve was known for his incisive
wit, an infectious laugh, his penchant for debate, and his contribution to
clear thinking around current issues absorbing the anarchist community. He
never missed a demonstration, would often carry a huge black flag in the
anarchist contingent, & enjoyed a beer & all night discussions.

After he was fired from Black Rose Books for protesting working
conditions, Steve returned to live in Toronto. In a tragic irony, he
recently won a cash prize in a literary contest for writing about the last
15 years of his life. A month later, he died. (His prize-winning short
story,' The Twice Delivered Letter,' will be published on-line sometime in
February 2005. Please check www.veahavta.org.

Steve's death comes as a shock to all who knew and loved him. His
daughter, Isabella, who still lives in Montreal, has requested that if
anyone has copies of her father's anarchist articles, pamphlets, papers or
letters (signed either Steve Ellams or Lazarus Jones), she would
appreciate the chance to read them. Please contact Norman Nawrocki if you
can help track them down.