BC author Gary Geddes has received the 2018 Freedom to Read Award from The Writers’ Union of Canada, announced today as Freedom to Read Week 2018 begins. The annual prize is awarded in recognition of work that is passionately supportive of free expression.
In announcing the prize, TWUC stated, “Geddes has written about war crimes, prisoners of war, conquest, and the violence institutionalized by government policy. He has also donated generously to scholarly work around social sciences and environmental studies… Gary’s lifetime works [are] an outstanding example of freedom of expression that impacts not just the students who receive the scholarships or read the books, but has the greatest impact on society as a whole. Gary has devoted his life to human rights issues.”
Born in Vancouver in 1940 and now living on Thetis Island, Geddes is a veteran poet and author of more than 35 books, many of which explore themes of political conflict and repression. Geddes has won more than a dozen national and international literary awards, including the British Columbia Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Literary Excellence and the Commonwealth Poetry Prize (Americas Region).
Geddes’ most recent nonfiction work, Medicine Unbundled: A Journey Through the Minefields of Indigenous Health Care (Heritage House), came out of his experience attending sessions of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in 2012. The book has also been shortlisted for the 2018 George Ryga Award for Social Awareness. As part of the project, Geddes is donating his royalty earnings from Medicine Unbundled to the Sellemah Scholarship for Indigenous students at the University of Victoria’s School of Environmental Studies.
Freedom to Read Week in Canada (February 25–March 3, 2018) is a national celebration that encourages Canadians to value their right to read, write, and publish freely. Past recipients of the prize include Deborah Campbell, Mohamed Fahmy, Janine Fuller, and Lawrence Hill.