- Clare Solomon
-
Clare Solomon President of ULU In office
March 2010 – March 2011Succeeded by Vratislav 'Vraj' Domalip Personal details Born Winchester, Hampshire Alma mater School of Oriental and African Studies Website http://solomonsmindfield.blogspot.com/ Clare Michelle Jane Solomon (born c. 1973) was the president of the University of London Union.
Solomon was born to Michael and Noreen Graham in Winchester, Hampshire.[1] Her father served in the Royal Military Police before emigrating to New Zealand with the family. She later returned to England to give birth to a son, taking the name Solomon from the boy's father. She moved to London and married Mohammed Bazlur Rahman, setting up a café near King's Cross railway station. Solomon was raised Mormon and converted to Islam but is now a self-described Atheist.
Solomon joined the Socialist Workers Party in 2005, but was expelled in 2009 following an internal dispute.[1] She is now affiliated with the Counterfire (organisation), "a network of activists who are Marxist, anti-capitalist, anti-war, anti-cuts while campaigning for equality and workers' rights."
Solomon began studying religion at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London when she was 31, becoming involved in student politics and holding several positions over the years. She has served as a ULU delegate at NUS conference, served on the steering committee for the NUS LGBT campaign until 2011,[1] and served as President of ULU until March 2011, having been elected in 2010.[2]
Solomon was outspoken during the 2010 UK student protests against the cuts to education, and was a vocal critic of National Union of Students leadership,[3] calling for the removal of its president Aaron Porter.[4] She appeared on the BBC's Newsnight programme alongside Porter and Liberal Democrat MP Simon Hughes.[5] Solomon led the 24 November protest march against Parliament, and was one of twelve students invited to a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg on the day the Browne Review was published.[6] Following the passing of the parliamentary bill to increase fees, she called for students to "take the action up a notch" with "more vigorous occupations".[7]
Solomon is a critic of Israeli policy on Palestine and has been criticised for allegedly antisemitic comments on Facebook, where she wrote, ‘I think you’ll also find that ALL religions have had their oppressors-some worse than others true, but to paint the picture that Jews have been persecuted all throughout history is one that has been fabricated in the last 100 or so years to justify the persecution of Palestinians." and added, 'To paint the picture that ALL Jews have always had to flee persecution is just plainly inaccurate.’[8][9]
Solomon has denied that the statements were anti-Semitic and clarified her views stating 'This badly-worded comment was something that I wrote in haste on Facebook at a very busy period. I’m sorry for any misunderstandings caused by what I wrote.' and further added 'My position is that Jewish people have always been persecuted throughout history nowhere more than during the holocaust when 6 million were murdered by the Nazis. I am totally against anti-Semitism and any persecution and oppression of Jewish people as I am against the oppression people on the grounds of any race or religion.' [10]
On the 14th of March 2011, Verso Books published a book about the students protests edited by Solomon entitled Springtime: The New Student Rebellions.[11] A number of positive reviews in papers such as The Guardian have been written.[12][13]
On March 17 Solomon lost her attempt to be re elected as the president of the University of London Union to Vratislav "Vraj" Domalip.[14]
See also
- University of London
- Counterfire (organisation)
- Verso Books
References
- ^ a b c Patrick Sawer, Ben Leach (2010-11-27). "The student firebrand behind wave of protests". The Daily Telegraph. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/8164855/The-student-firebrand-behind-wave-of-protests.html. Retrieved 2011-01-18.
- ^ "Mandate for resistance: Clare Solomon elected ULU President". Counterfire. 2010-03-11. http://www.counterfire.org/index.php/news/60-ulu-election/4104-mandate-for-resistance-clare-solomon-elected-ulu-president. Retrieved 2011-01-18.
- ^ James Meikle, Vikram Dodd and agencies (2010-12-10). "Royal car attack: Cameron calls for 'full force of law'". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2010/dec/10/royal-car-attack-cameron-charles. Retrieved 2011-01-18. "Clare Solomon, president of London University's student union, called the NUS leadership a disgrace. "They should have backed this demonstration. They are clearly out of touch," she said."
- ^ "No confidence in Aaron Porter!". National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts. 2010-12-15. http://anticuts.com/2010/12/15/nus-is-not-fit-for-purpose-we-need-a-fighting-union/. Retrieved 2011-01-18.
- ^ Richard Pendlebury (2011-01-04). "Riot rabble who targeted Tory HQ: Unmasked, the hardcore leaders of the student mob". The Daily Mail. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1328920/TUITION-FEES-PROTEST-Hardcore-leaders-student-mob-unmasked.html. Retrieved 2011-01-18. "One of those who used her position to galvanise support for the protests was Clare Solomon, president of the University of London Union. The 37-year-old mature student later appeared on Newsnight to defend the violence, describing the attack as only a ‘few smashed windows’."
- ^ "Students protest at Nick Clegg’s office". Coalition of Resistance. 2010-11-04. http://www.coalitionofresistance.org.uk/2010/11/students-protest-at-nick-cleggs-office-3-november/. Retrieved 2011-01-18.
- ^ Jessica Shepherd (201-12-30). "Students plan more protests over tuition fees and cuts". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2010/dec/30/student-protests-tuition-fee-rise. Retrieved 2011-01-18.
- ^ Richard Gold (2010-12-29). "AWL statement on Clare Solomon’s antisemitic comments". Engage Online. http://engageonline.wordpress.com/2010/12/29/awl-statement-on-clare-solomons-antisemitic-comments/. Retrieved 2011-01-18.
- ^ "Calls for 'anti-Semitic' student leader to quit after Facebook message about Jews". The Daily Mail. 2010-12-19. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1339882/Calls-anti-Semitic-student-leader-quit-Facebook-message-Jews.html. Retrieved 2011-01-18.
- ^ Sam Creighton (2010-11-29). "ULU President faces controversy over Facebook comments". Queen Mary Students Union. http://www.qmsu.org/news/article/7739/351/. Retrieved 2011-08-13.
- ^ "Springtime: The New Student Rebellions". Verso Books. March 14, 2011. http://www.versobooks.com/books/799-springtime. Retrieved March 22, 2011.
- ^ Natalie Hanman (2011-05-14). "Springtime: The New Student Rebellions review". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/may/15/springtime-new-student-rebellions-review. Retrieved 2011-08-13.
- ^ Alex Miller (2011-04-13). "Springtime: The New Student Rebellions". Morning Star. http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/index.php/content/view/full/103450. Retrieved 2011-08-13.
- ^ "The Saturday interview: Clare Solomon". The Guardian. March 19, 2011. http://www.guardian.co.uk/theguardian/2011/mar/19/clare-solomon-interview. Retrieved March 22, 2011.
External links
Categories:- Living people
- People from Winchester
- English activists
- 1970s births
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