Ellen Willis

Many have written and will write far more eloquently than I could of the passing of Ellen Willis. On sex and gender, music and television, history and war, and everything in between, Willis was always (and, I'm afraid, may long remain) far ahead of the curve. In her writing and activism, Willis tore through the conventional wisdom that binds the left to conservative values, innovatively and insistently reminding us that culture matters and that in any truly leftist project, freedom comes first. Her pioneering approach long ago cemented her reputation as one of the foremost cultural critics of our time. Willis' books and writings (the most recent of which can be found here) have had a tremendous influence on my own thought and writing. She will be sorely missed.