Silvia Rodgers
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3 March 1928
The Lady Rodgers of Quarry Bank | |
|---|---|
| Born | Silvia Szulman 3 March 1928 |
| Died | 8 October 2006 (aged 78) |
| Occupation(s) | Political activist and hostess; writer; anthropologist; dentist; sculptor |
| Notable work | Red Saint, Pink Daughter |
Silvia Rodgers, Baroness Rodgers of Quarry Bank, FRSL (née Szulman; 3 March 1928 – 8 October 2006), was a German-British writer and political activist. She was married to the politician Bill Rodgers.
Rodgers was born in Wedding (Berlin) to working-class Jewish parents.[1] Her parents were members of the Communist Party of Germany.[2][3] Her mother insisted that Silvia not participate in the Nazi salute at school.[3] In an afterword to her memoir, Rodgers wrote "When I was ten and still in Berlin, I had that feeling that there was nothing I could not do".[4]
The family came to Britain in 1939.[5]
Marriage and political involvement
Silvia Szulman and Bill Rodgers married in 1955.[5] The couple had three daughters: Rachel, Lucy and Juliet.[1]
Rodgers influenced her husband's political career, particularly his decision to leave the Labour Party and set up the Social Democratic Party.[1] Bill Rodgers said that most of the child-rearing fell to Silvia and that he was neglectful; she also worked as a dentist when he was first in parliament as they were not well-off.[6] She was noted as a political hostess.[1][5] Rodgers described herself as feeling like an outsider, dislocated and marginal.[1][4]
