Murray Thomson

Murray McCheyne Thomson OC (December 19, 1922 – May 2, 2019) was a Canadian peace activist.^[1]

Thomson was born in Honan, China where his parents were Christian missionaries. Thomson founded many non-profits in Canada.^[2] He was the 1990 recipient of the Pearson Medal of Peace^[3][4] for his work in peace and justice^[5] and was made an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2001.^[6][7] He was also awarded the (Canadian) Golden Jubilee Medal^[8] and the Diamond Jubilee Medal.^[9][8] He is a former Executive Director of CUSO.^[4]

He is credited in helping the formation of:

• Grindstone Island^{[citation needed]}
• The Peacefund Canada Foundation (1980s)
• Peace Brigades International^[7][4] (1981)
• Project Ploughshares^[7][4] (1976)
• Group of 78 (1980)
• Canadian Friends of Burma (1990)
• Canadians for a Nuclear Weapons Convention (2012)^{[citation needed]}

Murray was a recognized international expert and advisor to governments, aid organizations, and lobbyists on disarmament and arms control.^[7] He was significantly involved in starting the United Nations World Disarmament Campaign and drafting its policy document, which was passed by the United Nations General Assembly.^[7] He continued to be active in advocating for disarmament into 2019.^[10] For several years he led a campaign among members of the Order of Canada in calling for an international Nuclear Weapons Convention. Over 1,030 members of the Order have signed the statement as of May 2019.^[11]

He died on May 2, 2019, in Ottawa, Canada.^[12][13]

His archives are held by William Ready Division of Archives and Research Collections at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario.