Ben Isitt
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Ben Isitt BA, MA, LLB, PhD |
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|---|---|
| City Councillor and Regional Director Victoria, British Columbia, Canada | |
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Assumed office 8 December 2011 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born |
19 January 1978 Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada |
| Alma mater |
University of London University of New Brunswick University of Victoria |
Dr. Ben Isitt (born ca. 1978) is a Canadian historian and legal scholar with expertise in the relationship between social movements and the state. He holds public office as a city councillor and regional director in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.
Isitt's interest in world affairs and politics was sparked by a high school history class in which he was one of only two students to argue from the left. A backpacking trip through the United States further influenced him; the grade 12 student saw "glaring poverty." He entered the University of Victoria in 1996 and later became news editor of The Martlet. In a break after his first year, he took a 28-country trip through Europe and the Middle East, including a time working on an Israeli kibbutz. He earned his Bachelor of Arts in history and professional writing in 2001.
While a master's degree student at UVic, Isitt entered the contest for Mayor of Victoria as an independent candidate in 2002. This followed the decision of the Victoria Civic Electors, municipal arm of the New Democratic Party, against challenging the business-aligned incumbent Alan Lowe. Isitt's platform advocated for "a Cooperative & Green Victoria." David Turner, a New Democrat and Victoria's mayor from 1990 to 1993, endorsed Isitt for mayor for "his energy, vision and commitment to a more just distribution of resources." With 40 volunteers and $9 000, Isitt won more than five thousand votes, 32% of all ballots cast.
In 2003, Isitt finished his Master of Arts in history with a thesis on the origins of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) in British Columbia. The same year, he was elected to the executive of the New Democratic Youth of Canada as policy director, endorsing Joe Comartin for leader of the NDP and serving on the party's federal council.
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