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Eric Rofes, a leading scholar, author and activist in the gay community who lived in San Francisco, died unexpectedly Monday in Provincetown, Mass., where he was on a writing sabbatical. He was 51 and appears to have died from a heart attack, friends said.
"For more than 30 years, Eric was our movement's visionary," said Matt Foreman, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, where Mr. Rofes was a former board member. "He pushed us to be better, to never lose sight of what our movement for liberation is all about, and to love each other, fight for each other and celebrate our community."
Mr. Rofes led the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Community Center -- the largest gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender organization in the world -- from 1985 to 1988 and directed San Francisco's Shanti Project for people living with AIDS from 1989 to 1993.
Mr. Rofes, who was trained as a teacher and was fired from a job teaching sixth grade in Belmont, Mass., in 1978 because he was gay, also was an associate professor of education at Humboldt State University in Arcata (Humboldt County), where he lived part time.
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Story at the San Francisco ChronicleI've always enjoyed reading Rofes' books. He seemed to me to be a man who was always willing to challenge himself and think of old problems in new ways. That is an especially commendable trait.
Deepest sympathies to his friends and family. Eric brought an abundance of good into the world.