Brian Ivan Gillis

Brian Ivan Gillis, born January 6, 1983, in Detroit, MI, passed away in Halifax, NS, on Tuesday, September 30, 2025, at the age of 42. Brian was married to Theo Johnson-Freyd, and he is also survived by his sister, Terra Irene Gillis.

Brian spent most of his life as an academic star. He was a nationally-ranked policy debater; he attended Loyola University, the University of Chicago, Oxford University, and the University of California Berkeley; he served as a postdoctoral scholar at the University of Toronto and as an assistant professor at Dalhousie University. Brian's research focused on Indigenous literatures, with an emphasis on literatures from Native North America. His dissertation research developed the critical study of "Red English": how Native authors use or don't use stereotyped Indigenous voices in their texts, especially in autobiographical texts from the Long 19th Century.

Brian loved to cook and to host dinner parties, shopping at farmers and working his way through the writings of Julia Child and Alice Waters. He loved to travel: he once spent two months circumnavigating the globe; he visited more than half of the national parks in the United States. He had a soft spot for animals, adopting two kittens from the animal shelter and fostering a dog who had spent three years in a cage. His goal was to retire young, to spend his time growing vegetables and volunteering at animal shelters and as a docent at national historical parks.

Brian's journey, once filled with adventure and success, was deeply impacted by a challenging and all-too-common illness. What began as a simple enjoyment of Northern California wines gradually became something more overwhelming. Over time, this condition strained Brian's marriage and personal relationships, making it difficult for him to trust others or fully accept their love. It led him to view the world through a lens of suspicion, and he found himself hiding the pain with lies and shame. Ultimately, this illness took a heavy toll on his career and his health, and it was the damage to his liver that ultimately claimed his life.

Donations in Brian Gillis’ memory may be sent to: Partnership to End Addiction https://drugfree.org/; Nova Scotia SPCA https://www.novascotiaspca.ca/.