TORONTO — Experts say Stephen Lewis awakened the Canadian public’s consciousness to the HIV-AIDS pandemic raging in Africa, and they credit him with galvanizing the political will to stop standing idle.

Lewis, who dedicated his life to advocating for social justice, died on Tuesday at the age of 88.

Dr. Adrienne Chan, who has worked in the HIV sector for over two decades, says she remembers feeling frustrated as an infectious diseases resident when she saw what was happening in Africa.

Tens of millions of people on the continent were dying because they did not have access to the life-saving medications her patients had in Canada, and she said it seemed like nobody was doing anything about it.

That is until Lewis stepped in to amplify the voices of communities on the ground and call out the people in power.

After leading the Ontario New Democrats in the 1970s, Lewis held a number of diplomatic postings, including serving as the United Nations special envoy for HIV-AIDS in Africa from 2001 to 2006.

Lewis did something very different to other public servants in high positions at the United Nations, said David Morley, co-chair of the Stephen Lewis Foundation, which Lewis established in 2003.

Lewis travelled to sub-Saharan Africa to understand what this pandemic really did to communities and then he used his strong communication skills to tell their stories, Morley said.

“It was a horrible time in human history that we in North America I think have forgotten, but it was a horrible time with what was happening in sub-Saharan Africa and Stephen was the right person to come together with the mix of compassion and humanity and fury at injustice,” he said.

“What an incredible legacy this man has left us.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 1, 2026.

Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.

Hannah Alberga, The Canadian Press