Hedy Epstein, German-born American Holocaust survivor and political activist, Died at 91

  Activist

Hedy Epstein (née Wachenheimer) was born on August 15, 1924, and died on May 26, 2016.

She was a German-born Jewish-American political activist.

She was known for her support of the Palestinian cause through the International Solidarity Movement.

She came from Freiburg, from a Jewish family, she was rescued from Nazi Germany by the Kindertransport in 1939.

In 1948, Hedy immigrated to the United States, and lived in St. Louis, Missouri, for many years.

When the war was over, Epstein served with the Allied occupying forces in Germany, including working on the Doctors’ Trial at Nuremberg.

During 1948, Hedy migrated to New York City, then relocated to Minneapolis, and then to St. Louis, Missouri.

There, she got involved in activism for affordable housing, the pro-choice movement, and the antiwar movement.

Hedy Epstein founded a St. Louis chapter of the Women in Black, in 2001, an anti-war group that originally focused on Israel’s occupation.

During 2003, she traveled to the West Bank to work with the International Solidarity Movement.

Hedy Epstein returned once a year, claiming to CounterPunch that she had been strip searched and cavity searched in 2004 by guards at Ben Gurion International Airport.

Hedy Epstein passed away at 91 yrs old.