Meinhof, Ulrike (1934–1976)

Left-wing journalist Ulrike Meinhof was known for her affiliation with the West German Red Army Faction (RAF), later nicknamed the Baader-Meinhof Gang after its two most prominent members.

Her parents were killed when she was young, so Ulrike Meinhof was raised in West Germany by her foster mother, Renate Riemack, who was a socialist and profoundly influenced Meinhof's political views. As a college student, Meinhof married Klaus Rainer Rohl and became an editor and journalist for his left-wing student newspaper. They had twin girls together but then separated in the late 1960s.

At that time, Meinhof was becoming more involved in the radical-left student movement. She joined the RAF after she interviewed their leader, Andreas Baader, while he was in prison for arson. The aims of RAF were to revolutionize the working people, to convert the capitalist society, and to eliminate U.S. presence ...