Elise Danielle Benjamin

British Green Party activist, Jewish Greens member and community organiser in Oxford

Elise Danielle Benjamin
Image
Born	10 December 1965 Barnet, London, England
Died
Nationality	British
Residence
Occupation	Community market coordinator, political liaison officer, administrator
Known for	Jewish Greens activist in the Green Party of England and Wales; opposition to "Zionism is racism" motion
Parents	Brian Ralph Benjamin (born 6 February 1940, died 1985) and Janice Benjamin (née Abrams)
Spouse(s)
Children
Sibling(s)
Website

Elise Danielle Benjamin (born December 1965) is a British Green Party activist, community organiser, former parliamentary liaison officer and leading member of the Jewish Greens. She and Craig Simmons have been registered to the same address in Oxford on the Electoral Roll since 2002.

Elise Benjamin claims to be an 'indigenous Judean'.

Family

She is the daughter of Brian Ralph Benjamin (born 6 February 1940, died 1985) and Janice Benjamin (née Abrams) (married October–December 1962 in the Hackney district).

Her maternal grandparents were Hannah Abrams nee Lefcovitch (B:8 June 1900 St George in the East, London, England; D:24 May 1982 Whetstone, London, England) and Charles Abrams (AKA Shaya Mendel Iovanovitch Abramovitch) (B:14 Sep 1904 Odessa, Ukraine D:10th September 1988 London, England)

Her paternal grandparents were Philip Brown (B:11 May 1909 London, United Kingdom D:29 Aug 1993 Brent, Greater London, England) and Dora Brown (nee Toper) (B:7 January 1916 Mile End, London D:31 March 1992 Colney Heath, Herts)

Her own birth was registered October–December 1965 in Barnet district (mother’s maiden name Abrams).

She has lived in Oxford, OX4 since at least 2002 in a house that she co-owns with Craig Simmons, purchased for £96,000 on 31 January 1997.

Education and job history

Benjamin attended Southaw School (1977–1980) and East Barnet School (1980–1984).

Her professional roles include:

• Market Coordinator, East Oxford Farmers’ & Community Market (November 2016 – present).
• Regional Liaison Officer for Oxon & Berks, first for Caroline Lucas MEP (2008–2010) then Keith Taylor MEP (2010–2014).
• Financial Administrator, Africa Now (2002–2008).
• Project Administrator, RAP Community Action (2002–2003).
• Senior Administrator, Oxford Brookes University (1994–2001).

Jewish Greens and Zionism

Benjamin is an active member of the Jewish Greens (the Jewish special interest group within the Green Party). She has chaired events including “A guide to the Jewish Community” (September 2021) and “Discrimination against Gypsies Roma Travellers” (February 2021).

Her Twitter/X bio (@EliseDB) describes her as an “indigenous Judean” and includes a Ukraine flag emoji.

She has publicly opposed motions describing Zionism as racism at Green Party conferences, including in 2026.

The Jewish Greens group organises events that are frequently critical of Israeli government policies, including discussions on the Gaza crisis with speakers such as Daniel Levy (former IDF member and critic of the occupation) and joint Israeli-Palestinian initiatives such as A Land for All. The group has hosted Holocaust Memorial Day events and environmental Jewish events but does not promote uncritical support for Israeli policies; its focus is on peace, justice and criticism of occupation.

Benjamin and her co-habitee Craig Simmons (fellow Jewish Greens member and long-term resident at the same Oxford address) have both defended the Israeli-Palestinian peace group Standing Together against calls to deny it a platform at Green Party conference.

Benjamin stated: “Standing Together are a peace and social justice organisation with a Palestinian co-leader and many Palestinian members. Of course they work for the rights of Palestinians – they are very clear on this.”

Simmons added: “Neither Standing Together or Friends of Standing Together are on the BDS Boycott List … It could, at most, be argued that the BNC implicitly supports a boycott.”

Benjamin has retweeted Catherine Perez-Shakdam (alleged Mossad-linked figure and Henry Jackson Society associate) and other prominent Hasbara exponents including Hen Mazzig and accounts associated with the Israel Advocacy Movement and UK Lawyers for Israel.