The British Humanist Association (BHA) is saddened by the news that Jean Roberts, a founding member of Essex Humanists and the former Mayor of Chelmsford, has died at age 100. Roberts led a long and inspiring life and she will be greatly missed.
Jean Roberts’ life story is one filled with great achievements and remarkable anecdotes. She became a committed anti-fascist at 17 when visiting a pen pal in Germany, whose family took the pair along to a Nazi rally. Jean was so horrified with what she saw that it began a lifetime of work opposed to the kind of hate and oppression which the Nazis embodied.
In her personal life, Jean defied the conventions of early- and mid-20th century England. When she married her husband, rather than take his name, the newlyweds invented an entirely new surname they could share as equals. She kept her marriage a secret from colleagues, until she became pregnant, which forced her to give up her job as a primary school teacher.
But Jean didn’t stop there. She went on to teach sociology, and in that role developed a pleasure for opening young minds. Meanwhile, her political activities continued thick and fast, and in the thirties, she organised protests against the English fascist Oswald Mosley. At the same time as opposing Nazism and fascists at home, she had great sympathy for the ordinary German soldiers forced to fight the war. Showing kindness to a prisoner of war named Otto interned nearby, Jean developed a friendship which lasted years after the war, so touched was the soldier by her warmth and support at a time of great isolation and in a hostile place.
After the war, Jean took to domestic politics, motivated by the desire to make the world a better place. She became a committed Labour Party activist, and in 1961 became the first woman to be appointed Mayor of Chelmsford. A committed humanist, Jean was keen to ensure fairness for people of all beliefs and backgrounds, and so worked hard to promote secularism in Chelmsford. She was unsuccessful in removing council prayers from the formal agenda, but worked to reduce the role of the chaplain in formal business.
In the 1990s, still full of life and zeal, Jean founded Essex Humanists, a local BHA group, alongside Don Hilton, Brian Whitelaw, and Betty Judd. She was a committed member, attending practically every meeting. The group celebrated Jean’s 100th birthday in 2014, when she showed few signs of slowing down. She died peacefully on 9 April 2015. Her family intends to say goodbye to her with a humanist funeral in the coming days.
BHA Chief Executive Andrew Copson commented, ‘Jean lived an extraordinary life and was a fantastic example of someone motivated by their Humanism to make the world a better place, which she did with enthusiasm for almost a century. The BHA and Essex Humanists have lost a stalwart member but we all feel proud and lucky to have known her.’
Notes
The British Humanist Association is the national charity working on behalf of non-religious people who seek to live ethical and fulfilling lives on the basis of reason and humanity. It promotes a secular state and equal treatment in law and policy of everyone, regardless of religion or belief.