Annemarie Grewel (13 June 1935 – 27 February 1998) was a Dutch senator, educator, and columnist. She was an openly lesbian politician. Grewel was usually the chairperson of Labour Party congresses. In 1982, she became a columnist for ''

De Groene Amsterdammer ''De Groene Amsterdammer'' is an independent Dutch weekly news magazine published in Amsterdam and distributed throughout the Netherlands. It is conventionally considered to be one of the four major weeklies, alongside ''HP/De Tijd'', ''Vrij Neder ...

''. In 1986, she was elected to the

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counci ...

of Amsterdam. In 1995, she was elected to the Dutch Senate.

Biography

Grewel was born on 13 June 1935 in Amsterdam. She would describe her a family as elitist,

bohemian Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Beer * National Bohemian, a brand brewed by Pabst * Bohemian, a brand of beer brewed by Molson Coors Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, origin ...

Jews. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the family went into hiding. Annemarie, her parents and her brother survived the war. After the war, the family adopted an orphaned girl who had survived Bergen-Belsen. Grewel studied

pedagogy Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken as ...

at the

University of Amsterdam The University of Amsterdam (abbreviated as UvA, nl, Universiteit van Amsterdam) is a public research university located in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The UvA is one of two large, publicly funded research universities in the city, the other being ...

, and in 1963 she was appointed scientific assistant at the University. She would remain at the university until 1987. Around 1960, she fell in love with a woman, and became openly gay. Grewel also became politically active, and joined the Labour Party. From 1975 until 1981, Grewel was chairperson of the University Council. During that period, she was often asked to chair congresses of the Labour Party. In 1982, she became a columnist for ''

''. In 1983, Grewel was a candidate for Mayor of Amsterdam, but was not chosen. In 1986, Grewel ran for the

of Amsterdam and was elected. In 1989, she was knighted in the

Order of Orange-Nassau The Order of Orange-Nassau ( nl, Orde van Oranje-Nassau, links=no) is a civil and military Dutch order of chivalry founded on 4 April 1892 by the queen regent, Emma of the Netherlands. The order is a chivalric order open to "everyone who has ...

. In 1995, she was elected to the Dutch Senate. Grewel had been diagnosed with cancer, but continued to perform her duties. On 27 February 1998, she died at the age of 62 in Amsterdam. Municipal elections in Amsterdam were scheduled on 6 March 1998, and Grewel was still on the ballot on the 8th position. She posthumously received 2,633 votes and would have been re-elected.

Electoral history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grewel, Annemarie 1935 births 1998 deaths Dutch columnists Dutch women columnists 20th-century Dutch educators Dutch women educators Dutch Jews Dutch women scientists Holocaust survivors Knights of the Order of Orange-Nassau Labour Party (Netherlands) politicians Lesbian politicians Dutch lesbians Dutch LGBT politicians LGBT members of the Parliament of the Netherlands Members of the Senate (Netherlands) Municipal councillors of Amsterdam Politicians from Amsterdam University of Amsterdam alumni Academic staff of the University of Amsterdam 20th-century Dutch women 20th-century Dutch LGBT people