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'''Jillian Becker''' (born 2 June 1932)<ref name=BBC130210>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-21336933|title=Sylvia Plath: Jillian Becker on the poet's last days|date=10 February 2010|work=BBC News|accessdate=9 March 2015}}</ref> is a South African-born British author, journalist, and lecturer |
'''Jillian Becker''' (born 2 June 1932)<ref name=BBC130210>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-21336933|title=Sylvia Plath: Jillian Becker on the poet's last days|date=10 February 2010|work=BBC News|accessdate=9 March 2015}}</ref> is a South African-born British author, journalist, and lecturer, who specialises in research about terrorism. Her work includes ''[[Hitler's Children: The Story of the Baader-Meinhof Terrorist Gang]]'' (1977).<ref name="Spender">{{cite news |last1=Spender |first1=Stephen |title=German Terror From the Left |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1977/06/19/archives/german-terror-from-the-left-terror.html |access-date=28 October 2021 |work=The New York Times |date=19 June 1977}}</ref> |
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==Life== |
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| ⚫ | Becker's father |
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| ⚫ | Becker |
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Becker was in a long relationship with Bernhard Adamczewski who filled the triple role of co-director of the [[#Institute for the Study of Terrorism|Institute for the Study of Terrorism]], computer manager and explosives expert, having become qualified in the use of explosives when he had worked in the South African gold mines in the 1950s. Her three marriages produced three daughters and six grandchildren. |
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| ⚫ | Becker is on the council of |
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She is the manager and editor of The Atheist Conservative blog<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://theatheistconservative.com/about/|title=1. About us|date=2009-05-06|work=The Atheist Conservative|access-date=2017-11-17|language=en-US}}</ref> and founder and chief administrator of The Athiest Conservative Forum .<ref>https://forum.theatheistconservative.com/|date=2021-12-05|</ref> She is a lifelong friend of the atheist scientist, [[Lewis Wolpert]], and she knew and frequently corresponded with the famous atheist philosopher, [[Antony Flew]], and the Irish artist husband and wife pair, [[Philip and Barry Castle]]. Indeed, Barry painted a portrait of Becker and Adamczewski.{{Citation needed|date=January 2021}} A series of biographical sketches about southern African writers she has known, such as [[Doris Lessing]], [[Nadine Gordimer]] and [[Lionel Abrahams]] and others has been published in the New English Review in 2020.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newenglishreview.org/custpage.cfm?frm=190232|title = Jillian Becker}}</ref> She was also a close friend of [[Eve Arnold]] and wrote an appreciation of her in 2021 for City Journal<ref>https://www.city-journal.org/eve-arnold-artist-with-a-camera</ref> . |
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A lecture series titled The Jillian Becker Annual Lecture was launched under the auspices of The Freedom Association in 2018.{{cn|date=October 2021}} |
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==Published works== |
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Becker's early work is mostly fiction which was banned in her native South Africa, under the [[apartheid]] regime.{{cn|date=October 2021}} Her short story "The Stench" received a [[Pushcart Prize]].{{cn|date=October 2021}} |
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She has written an account of the death of her friend, the poet [[Sylvia Plath]], who stayed with Becker for the last weekend of her life.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-21336933|title = Sylvia Plath: Jillian Becker on the poet's last days|work = BBC News|date = 10 February 2013}}</ref> Dissatisfied with the biographers' treatments and after seeing the film script to ''Sylvia'' (and declining the opportunity to have anything to do with the film), Becker decided to write her own account of Plath's death: ''Giving Up: the last days of Sylvia Plath''. |
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==Early life and move to London== |
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| ⚫ | Becker's father was [[Bernard Friedman]], a South African surgeon and politician who co-founded the anti-apartheid [[Progressive Party (South Africa)|Progressive Party]]. Becker attended [[Roedean School (South Africa)|Roedean School]] in [[Johannesburg]] before graduating from the [[University of the Witwatersrand]]. |
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| ⚫ | Becker left her first husband, Michael Geber, in South Africa to live in Italy with her second husband, Gerry Becker, later moving to Mountfort Crescent, near Barnsbury Square in London. It was here that Becker's friend, [[Sylvia Plath]], came to stay with her young children in the days immediately before Plath's suicide; Becker's book ''Giving Up'' is based around Plath's last days there.<ref name="Gladwell">{{cite news |last1=Gladwell |first1=Malcolm |author-link1=Malcolm Gladwell |title=Sylvia Plath's Final Goodbye |url=https://www.sundayguardianlive.com/culture/sylvia-plaths-final-goodbye |access-date=28 October 2021 |work=The Sunday Guardian Live |date=2 November 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-21336933|title = Sylvia Plath: Jillian Becker on the poet's last days|work = BBC News|date = 10 February 2013}}</ref> Becker became a British citizen in 1960.<ref name=BBC130210/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://penguin.bookslive.co.za/blog/2008/09/29/new-penguin-modern-classic-the-keep-by-jillian-becker/|title=New Penguin Modern Classic: The Keep by Jillian Becker|date=29 September 2008|work=Penguin Books South Africa }}</ref> |
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| ⚫ | ''The PLO: The Rise and Fall of the Palestine Liberation Organization'' was commissioned by [[Weidenfeld & Nicolson]] and published in 1984. Becker spent months in [[Lebanon]] during the |
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==Career and political advocacy== |
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==Institute for the Study of Terrorism== |
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| ⚫ | Becker's best-known book, ''Hitler's Children: The Story of the Baader-Meinhof Terrorist Gang'', is about the German [[Red Army Faction]]. The book was chosen by [[Golo Mann]] as ''[[Newsweek]]'' (Europe) book of the year 1977,<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ddvLDAAAQBAJ&q=%22newsweek%22+book+of+the+year+1977+Hitler%27s+Children&pg=PA127|title=Revolutionary Violence and the New Left: Transnational Perspectives|isbn=9781317291374|last1=Alvarez|first1=Alberto Martin|last2=Tristán|first2=Eduardo Rey|date=5 August 2016}}</ref> and serialised in newspapers in London, Oslo and Tokyo. |
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| ⚫ | In the 1980s, Becker served in a multi-party working group to advise the British Parliament on measures to combat international terrorism. She was also consulted by the embassies of several countries affected by |
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| ⚫ | ''The PLO: The Rise and Fall of the Palestine Liberation Organization'' was commissioned by [[Weidenfeld & Nicolson]] and published in 1984. Becker spent months in [[Lebanon]] during the [[Lebanese_Civil_War#1978_Israeli_invasion|Lebanese Civil War]], which [[Israel]] entered to confront the [[Palestine Liberation Organization]] (PLO). She claimed to have retrieved secret documents from the ruins of bombed PLO office buildings and to have interviewed Lebanese of all denominations and Palestinians who had experienced PLO oppression, as well as supporters, members and leaders of the PLO.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://bookstore.authorhouse.com/Products/SKU-000688502/The-Plo.aspx|title=The PLO: The Rise and Fall of the Palestine Liberation Organization|work=Authorhouse}}</ref> The book was heavily criticized by the ''[[Journal of Palestine Studies]]'' as "facile and tendentious," as well as the lack of any PLO members being interviewed.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Egan |first=John P. |date=1986 |editor-last=Becker |editor-first=Jillian |title=Bashing the PLO |jstor=2537028 |journal=Journal of Palestine Studies |volume=16 |issue=1 |pages=138–140 |doi=10.2307/2537028 |issn=0377-919X}}</ref> |
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In 1985, with [[Lord Chalfont]], a former minister in the [[Foreign and Commonwealth Office]], she founded the "Institute for the Study of Terrorism" (IST) of which she was executive director from 1985 to 1990. With Chalfont on the presiding council were [[Caroline Cox, Baroness Cox|Baroness Cox]], who was then deputy speaker of the House of Lords, and [[Ian Orr-Ewing, Baron Orr-Ewing|Lord Orr-Ewing]]. The institute's International Advisory Council included experts in many Western countries on terrorism, security, weaponry, and geo-politics. In the Institute itself Becker worked with a small staff of researchers and translators. Bernhard Adamczewski was her co-director at IST.<ref name=hb/> |
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| ⚫ | In the 1980s, Becker served in a multi-party working group to advise the British Parliament on measures to combat international terrorism. She was also consulted by the embassies of several countries affected by domestic terrorist organisations, some of which were supported by foreign nation states. In many of these cases, terrorist activity was an aspect of proxy wars, which Becker called "the hot spots of the Cold War".<ref name=hb>{{cite web|url=https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G2-3417700019.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181114095814/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G2-3417700019.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=14 November 2018|title=Becker, Jillian (Ruth) 1932-|accessdate=18 January 2016}}</ref> In 1985, with [[Lord Chalfont]], a former minister in the [[Foreign and Commonwealth Office]], Becker founded the Institute for the Study of Terrorism (IST), becoming its executive director from 1985 to 1990.<ref name=hb/> |
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IST was a registered charity, supported mainly by charitable donations but also partly self-supporting by providing expert consultancy and supplying reports to private companies, such as those needing risk assessments when expanding into foreign countries.{{citation needed|date=June 2016}} |
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| ⚫ | Becker is on the council of [[The Freedom Association]],<ref>[http://www.tfa.net/about-us/council-and-supporters/ The Freedom Association - Council and Supporters] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130407205549/http://www.tfa.net/about-us/council-and-supporters/ |date=7 April 2013 }}</ref> and is the manager and editor of ''The Atheist Conservative'' blog.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://theatheistconservative.com/about/|title=1. About us|date=2009-05-06|work=The Atheist Conservative|access-date=2017-11-17|language=en-US}}</ref> She lives in California.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://us.macmillan.com/author/jillianbecker |title=Jillian Becker | Authors | Macmillan |publisher=Us.macmillan.com |accessdate=2015-06-20}}</ref> |
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In 1990 the institute was forced to close as many donors stopped their contributions.{{cn|date=October 2021}} The archive of the institute was bought by the [[University of Leicester]], and was one of the collections with which the Scarman Centre, a research facility for the Department of Criminology, was founded. |
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==Books== |
==Books== |
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*{{cite book|isbn=978-0-397-01153-7|title=[[Hitler's Children: The Story of the Baader-Meinhof Terrorist Gang]]|last1=Becker|first1=Jillian|year=1977|publisher=J.B. Lippincott|location=Philadelphia}} |
*{{cite book|isbn=978-0-397-01153-7|title=[[Hitler's Children: The Story of the Baader-Meinhof Terrorist Gang]]|last1=Becker|first1=Jillian|year=1977|publisher=J.B. Lippincott|location=Philadelphia}} |
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*{{cite book|isbn=0-297-78299-1|title=The PLO: The Rise and Fall of the Palestine Liberation Organization|last1=Becker|first1=Jillian|year=1984|publisher=Weidenfeld and Nicolson|location=London}} |
*{{cite book|isbn=0-297-78299-1|title=The PLO: The Rise and Fall of the Palestine Liberation Organization|last1=Becker|first1=Jillian|year=1984|publisher=Weidenfeld and Nicolson|location=London}} |
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*{{cite book|isbn=978-1898490319|title=Giving up: The Last Days of Sylvia Plath|last1=Becker|first1=Jillian|year=2002|publisher=Ferrington|location=London}} |
*{{cite book|isbn=978-1898490319|title=Giving up: The Last Days of Sylvia Plath |last1=Becker |first1=Jillian |year=2002 |publisher=Ferrington |location=London}} |
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==References== |
==References== |
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Latest revision as of 20:55, 7 February 2024
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|
Jillian Becker | |
|---|---|
 Jillian Becker in 1972 | |
| Born | 2 June 1932 Johannesburg, South Africa |
| Nationality | British |
| Citizenship | British American |
| Education | University of the Witwatersrand (BA) |
| Notable works | Hitler's Children |
| Notable awards | Pushcart Prize |
| Website | |
| www | |
Jillian Becker (born 2 June 1932)[1] is a South African-born British author, journalist, and lecturer, who specialises in research about terrorism. Her work includes Hitler's Children: The Story of the Baader-Meinhof Terrorist Gang (1977).[2]
Early life and move to London
[edit]Becker's father was Bernard Friedman, a South African surgeon and politician who co-founded the anti-apartheid Progressive Party. Becker attended Roedean School in Johannesburg before graduating from the University of the Witwatersrand.
Becker left her first husband, Michael Geber, in South Africa to live in Italy with her second husband, Gerry Becker, later moving to Mountfort Crescent, near Barnsbury Square in London. It was here that Becker's friend, Sylvia Plath, came to stay with her young children in the days immediately before Plath's suicide; Becker's book Giving Up is based around Plath's last days there.[3][4] Becker became a British citizen in 1960.[1][5]
Career and political advocacy
[edit]Becker's best-known book, Hitler's Children: The Story of the Baader-Meinhof Terrorist Gang, is about the German Red Army Faction. The book was chosen by Golo Mann as Newsweek (Europe) book of the year 1977,[6] and serialised in newspapers in London, Oslo and Tokyo.
The PLO: The Rise and Fall of the Palestine Liberation Organization was commissioned by Weidenfeld & Nicolson and published in 1984. Becker spent months in Lebanon during the Lebanese Civil War, which Israel entered to confront the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). She claimed to have retrieved secret documents from the ruins of bombed PLO office buildings and to have interviewed Lebanese of all denominations and Palestinians who had experienced PLO oppression, as well as supporters, members and leaders of the PLO.[7] The book was heavily criticized by the Journal of Palestine Studies as "facile and tendentious," as well as the lack of any PLO members being interviewed.[8]
In the 1980s, Becker served in a multi-party working group to advise the British Parliament on measures to combat international terrorism. She was also consulted by the embassies of several countries affected by domestic terrorist organisations, some of which were supported by foreign nation states. In many of these cases, terrorist activity was an aspect of proxy wars, which Becker called "the hot spots of the Cold War".[9] In 1985, with Lord Chalfont, a former minister in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Becker founded the Institute for the Study of Terrorism (IST), becoming its executive director from 1985 to 1990.[9]
Becker is on the council of The Freedom Association,[10] and is the manager and editor of The Atheist Conservative blog.[11] She lives in California.[12]
Books
[edit]Selected fiction
[edit]- Becker, Jillian (1971). The Keep. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books. ISBN 978-0-14-003204-8.
- Becker, Jillian (1971). The Union. London: Chatto and Windus. ISBN 0-7011-1625-0.
- Becker, Jillian (1986). The Virgins: A Novel. Cape Town: David Philip. ISBN 978-0-86486-050-7.
Non-fiction
[edit]- Becker, Jillian (1977). Hitler's Children: The Story of the Baader-Meinhof Terrorist Gang. Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott. ISBN 978-0-397-01153-7.
- Becker, Jillian (1984). The PLO: The Rise and Fall of the Palestine Liberation Organization. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson. ISBN 0-297-78299-1.
- Becker, Jillian (2002). Giving up: The Last Days of Sylvia Plath. London: Ferrington. ISBN 978-1898490319.
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Sylvia Plath: Jillian Becker on the poet's last days". BBC News. 10 February 2010. Retrieved 9 March 2015.
- ^ Spender, Stephen (19 June 1977). "German Terror From the Left". The New York Times. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
- ^ Gladwell, Malcolm (2 November 2019). "Sylvia Plath's Final Goodbye". The Sunday Guardian Live. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
- ^ "Sylvia Plath: Jillian Becker on the poet's last days". BBC News. 10 February 2013.
- ^ "New Penguin Modern Classic: The Keep by Jillian Becker". Penguin Books South Africa. 29 September 2008.
- ^ Alvarez, Alberto Martin; Tristán, Eduardo Rey (5 August 2016). Revolutionary Violence and the New Left: Transnational Perspectives. ISBN 9781317291374.
- ^ "The PLO: The Rise and Fall of the Palestine Liberation Organization". Authorhouse.
- ^ Egan, John P. (1986). Becker, Jillian (ed.). "Bashing the PLO". Journal of Palestine Studies. 16 (1): 138–140. doi:10.2307/2537028. ISSN 0377-919X. JSTOR 2537028.
- ^ a b "Becker, Jillian (Ruth) 1932-". Archived from the original on 14 November 2018. Retrieved 18 January 2016.
- ^ The Freedom Association - Council and Supporters Archived 7 April 2013 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "1. About us". The Atheist Conservative. 6 May 2009. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
- ^ "Jillian Becker | Authors | Macmillan". Us.macmillan.com. Retrieved 20 June 2015.
Categories:
- 1932 births
- Living people
- British non-fiction writers
- University of the Witwatersrand alumni
- Members of the Freedom Association
- Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom
- South African emigrants to the United Kingdom
- 20th-century British writers
- 21st-century British writers
- 20th-century British women writers
- 21st-century British women writers
- 20th-century British short story writers
- British historical fiction writers
- British writers
- 20th-century atheists
- 21st-century atheists
- Alumni of Roedean School, South Africa