Louis Crompton

Louis Crompton (April 5, 1925 – July 11, 2009) was a Canadian scholar, professor, author, and pioneer in the instruction of queer studies.

Biography Born to Master Mariner Clarence and Mabel Crompton, Crompton received an M.A. in mathematics from the University of Toronto in 1948 and a Ph.D. in English from the University of Chicago in 1954. After teaching mathematics at the University of British Columbia and the University of Toronto, he joined the English department at the University of Nebraska in 1955, retiring in 1989. During his career, he gained an international reputation as a scholar of the works of George Bernard Shaw.

In the early 1970s, Crompton became the faculty advisor for the Gay Action Group, forerunner of today's UNL Queer Ally Coalition, and also helped found the UNL Homophobia Awareness Committee, which became the Committee on Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Concerns. In 1974, Crompton co-founded with Dolores Noll (1930–2019) of Kent State University and others the Gay and Lesbian Caucus of the Modern Language Association. Bentham had suppressed the essay during his lifetime, for fear of public outrage at his views on liberalizing the laws concerning homosexual activity.

Crompton received many awards and honors during his career, including the Bonnie Zimmerman and Vern L. Bullough Prize of the Foundation for the Scientific Study of Sexuality award for 2003 for his book Homosexuality and Civilization, which covers 2500 years of world history.

At the time of his death, Crompton, who had retired to California, was a professor emeritus of English at UNL. He was survived by his partner of forty years, Luis Diaz-Perdomo, also a former UNL faculty member who served many years with Counseling and Psychological Services at UNL and facilitated the Gay Men's Discussion Group.

In 2009, a scholarship was established at UNL in Crompton's name for students working toward "a more just, inclusive society for the LGBTQ community"; the first award to a student was made in 2013.

Works

Books written by Crompton include:

Shaw the Dramatist. University of Nebraska Press, 1969. Byron and Greek Love: Homophobia in 19th-century England. University of California Press, 1985. Homosexuality and Civilization. Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2003.