Bell Ribeiro-Addy
Bell Ribeiro-Addy | |
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Shadow Minister for Immigration | |
In office 24 January 2020 – 9 April 2020 | |
Leader | Jeremy Corbyn |
Preceded by | Afzal Khan |
Succeeded by | Holly Lynch |
Member of Parliament for Streatham | |
Assumed office 12 December 2019 | |
Preceded by | Chuka Umunna |
Majority | 17,690 (31.3%) |
Personal details | |
Born | Bellavia Janet Ribeiro-Addy 1985 Streatham, London |
Political party | Labour |
Alma mater | University of Bradford (BSc) Queen Mary University of London (MA) BPP Law School (GDL) |
Bellavia Janet Ribeiro-Addy (born 1985) is a British Labour Party politician who has served as the Member of Parliament for Streatham since the 2019 general election.[1][2] She considers herself a "life-long socialist" and a feminist.[3]
Early life
Ribeiro-Addy was born and raised in Streatham, growing up on a council estate on Brixton Hill. She is Christian and of Ghanaian descent.[3][4]
Privately educated at the independent Streatham and Clapham High School, Ribeiro-Addy graduated as a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Science with Ethics & Philosophy of Science from the University of Bradford later gaining a Master of Arts in Medical Law & Ethics at Queen Mary University of London, awarded in 2007, and a Graduate Diploma in Law at BPP Law School, awarded in 2015.[citation needed] She was the National Black Students' Officer for the National Union of Students (NUS) from 2008 to 2010, national co-ordinator of the Student Assembly Against Racism, and the national convenor of the NUS' Anti-Racism/Anti-Fascism campaign.[5]
In 2010, the Durham Union Society was forced to cancel a debate on multiculturalism on safety grounds, after the NUS Black Students Officer (Ribeiro-Addy) and LGBT+ Officer (Daf Adley) sent a letter to the Union, Durham University and Durham Students Union in opposition to inviting then far-right BNP MEP Andrew Brons to speak on campus. The letter warned of a "colossal demonstration" if the debate went ahead. It went on to say "If any students are hurt in and around this event, responsibility will lie with you.”[citation needed]
Political career
Before becoming an MP, Ribeiro-Addy was chief of staff to former Labour frontbencher Diane Abbott.[6]
Bell also sits as a school governor at Saint Gabriel's College, Camberwell. She was the elected as the Labour MP for Streatham in 2019 with a majority of 17,690, reduced by over 8,000.
Ribeiro-Addy is a member of Labour's left-wing Socialist Campaign Group and has challenged the role of the media in devaluing black female MPs, particularly regarding recent BBC Parliament subtitling errors.[7]
Ribeiro-Addy in her maiden speech called for some form of reparations to former colonial subjects.[8]
In January 2020, Ribeiro-Addy was appointed as Shadow Minister for Immigration, just weeks after her election as a member of parliament. She was not retained in the role following the election of Keir Starmer as Labour Leader.[9]
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Ribeiro-Addy called on the government to release people held in immigration detention centres.[10]
References
- ^ "Streatham constituency results 2019: Labour's Bell Ribeiro-Addy wins". Evening Standard. 13 December 2019. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
- ^ "Streatham election results in full: Labour's Bell Ribeiro-Addy gains seat". SW Londoner. 13 December 2019. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
- ^ a b "Local left candidate squares off Nov. 2 in Streatham V. two councillors from Blairite-dominated Lambeth". Skwawkbox. 25 October 2019. Retrieved 17 December 2019.
- ^ "UK elections: Two Ghanaian women win seats for Labour". The Ghana Report. 13 December 2019. Retrieved 17 December 2019.
- ^ "Bellavia Ribeiro-Addy". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 December 2019.
- ^ "Streatham election results: Ribeiro-Addy makes shocking N-word admission". South West Londoner. 1 December 2019. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
- ^ "Black MP caption mistakes 'show lack of respect'". BBC News. 4 February 2020. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
- ^ Shah, Hasit. "What the UK owes in reparations". Quartz. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
- ^ "Bell Ribeiro-Addy appointed as shadow immigration minister". Voice Online. 24 January 2020. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
- ^ Lizzie Dearden Home Affairs Correspondent @lizziedearden (1 March 2020). "Coronavirus: Immigration detainees must be released to stop spread of virus, Labour says". The Independent. Retrieved 19 March 2020.
External links
- Profile at Parliament of the United Kingdom
- Contributions in Parliament at Hansard
- Voting record at Public Whip
- Record in Parliament at TheyWorkForYou
- Living people
- 1985 births
- 21st-century British women politicians
- Alumni of Queen Mary University of London
- Alumni of the University of Bradford
- Anti-racism activists
- Black British politicians
- English anti-fascists
- English feminists
- English people of Ghanaian descent
- English socialists
- Female members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies
- Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies
- People from the London Borough of Lambeth
- Socialist feminists
- UK MPs 2019–