Ladipo Solanke

Ladipo Solanke (c. 1886 – 2 September 1958) was a political activist born in Nigeria who campaigned on West African issues.

Biography Birth and education Born in Abeokuta, Nigeria, as Oladipo Felix Solanke, he studied at the Fourah Bay College in Sierra Leone before moving to study law at University College, London, in 1922.

In Britain, Solanke joined the Union of Students of African Descent. In 1924, he wrote to West Africa magazine to complain about an article in the Evening News, which had claimed that cannibalism and black magic had been common in Nigeria until recent years. His protest received the support of Amy Ashwood Garvey, who became a close friend, while Solanke began studying British papers for other derogatory reports.

Teaching Finding himself living in poverty, Solanke began teaching Yoruba and was annoyed by the lack of interest in traditional Nigerian culture among other Nigerian students in London.