Today, York University mourns the loss of Leo Panitch, Distinguished Research Professor in the Department of Politics at the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies. Leo was a renowned political economist, Marxist theorist and co-editor of The Socialist Register, and was awarded a Canada Research Chair in 2002 for his study of the role of the United States in leading and managing globalization, which was renewed in 2009. In 1994, he was inducted as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada for the significant impact of his scholarship and his contributions to the development of the theory of the state in capitalist societies.

Leo was an iconic figure on campus throughout his career at York, which spanned more than 30 years. He joined the University in 1984 as a Professor of Political Science, and continued in this role until his retirement in 2016. He was Chair of the Department of Political Science from 1988 to 1994. Prior to his time at York, he was was a Professor at Carleton University.

A prolific writer and distinguished authority on the spread of global capitalism, Leo was the author of more than 100 scholarly articles and 9 books, including Renewing Socialism: Transforming Democracy, Strategy and Imagination, The End of Parliamentary Socialism: From New Left to New Labour and, with his colleague Sam Gindin, The Making of Global Capitalism: The Political Economy of American Empire, which was awarded the Deutscher Memorial Prize in 2013 and the Rik Davidson/Studies in Political Economy Book Prize in 2014.

Leo was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba — a great source of pride to him — and received a B.A. (Hons) from the University of Manitoba in 1967. He went on to study at the London School of Economics and Political Science, where he was awarded an M.Sc. (Hons.) in 1969 and a PhD in 1974.

Leo’s loss will be felt deeply across our campuses and around the world, and his contributions to socialist thinking will continue to influence political scholarship for many years to come. On behalf of the entire York University community, I extend my heartfelt condolences to his family, and to the generations of students and colleagues who he guided and inspired throughout his illustrious career.

Sincerely,
Rhonda L. Lenton
President & Vice-Chancellor