Leah L'Estrange Malone

Leah L'Estrange Malone (1886 – 4 September 1951) was a British politician.

Biography

She was born in London as Leah Klingenstein, to Arthur Klingenstein and Regina Klingenstein (née Schubach): her family changed their surname to "Kay" while she was still a child. She had an older brother, Sidney, an older sister, Noëmi, and a younger brother Gilbert who died in childhood. She completed a degree in modern history in 1904 at Somerville College, Oxford,[1] before becoming an inspector with the Ministry of Health, then in 1917 became the secretary to Henry Cavendish-Bentinck, Member of Parliament for Nottingham South. While working for Cavendish-Bentinck, she met Cecil Malone, Member of Parliament for Leyton East and the Communist Party of Great Britain's first MP. She and Malone married in 1921.[2]

The L'Estrange Malones soon left the Communist Party and joined the Labour Party. In 1923, Leah became the first female chair of Poale Zion in the UK.[3] In 1924, along with Frida Laski, Dora Russell and Dorothy Jewson she cofounded the Workers' Birth Control Group, which provided advice on birth control to working-class women.[4] She worked with Dora Russell to successfully persuade the party to adopt a policy of making access to birth control easier. In 1934, she was elected to the London County Council, representing West Fulham, and in 1937 she was made an alderman. During her time on the council she served on various committees, including a period chairing the Public Assistance Committee.[2]

L'Estrange Malone died in 1951, while on holiday in Italy.[2] She is buried at the Cimitero Monumentale di Staglieno in Genoa.

Further reading
  • Brooke, Stephen (2011). Sexual Politics: Sexuality, Family Planning, and the British Left from the 1880s to the Present Day, chapter 2: "Clash: The Labour Party and Birth Control, 1923 to 1930". Oxford University Press

References
  1. Batson, Judy G (2008). Her Oxford. Vanderbilt University Press, p.190. ISBN 9780826516107.
  2. Law, Cheryl. Women: A Modern Political Dictionary, p.94. I.B. Tauris, 2000.
  3. Rose, Ella (21 November 2018). "Dealing with Labour antisemitism would endanger Jeremy Corbyn's lifelong dream". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  4. "Fabian Society". allreligionsareone.org. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
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