Earle Alfred Birney (May 13, 1904 - September 3, 1995) was a distinguished Canadian poet and twice winner of the Governor General's Award for Literature (for David, 1942, and for Now Is Time, 1945). Born in Calgary, Alberta, he studied at the University of British Columbia, University of Toronto, Berkeley and University of London. In the 1930s he was an active Trotskyist in Canada and Britain but drifted away from the movement during World War II. In 1970 he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada.