Judy Cohen

Judy Cohen was born on September 17, 1928 into a large Orthodox family with 6 siblings in Debrecen, Hungary. Discriminatory enactments towards Jewish communities were already common before the war, and with the occupation of German troops in 1944, Judy was forced to work at a brick factory alongside her sisters.

Within the first week of June, she was deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau, and at only 16 years old, was separated from all other family members. She was transferred to Bergen Belsen and the Junkers Airplane Factory as a slave worker, where she was reunited with her friends Sari and Edith from Debrecen. The three cared for one another, sharing food and supporting each other in order to survive.

In April 1945, the bombardments of the American Air Force destroyed the factory, beginning the forced march of Judy and all other prisoners with no food, water, or shelter until the end of the war. Out of the original 500 women, only 200 remained when news of liberation arrived on May 5th, 1945—closely followed by the war’s end 3 days later.

Post-war, Judy returned to Hungary to find her youngest brother, and together, journeyed back to Germany with the Zionist organization, Bricha, to reunite with their sister in a displaced persons camp. Judy then emigrated to Canada, where she received schooling to become an office worker, and eventually married Sidney Jessel Cohen. Today, after retiring, Judy works as an avid educator on women’s experiences during the Holocaust, participating in public speeches and developing her own website titled Women and the Holocaust.

Edith, Judy and Sari, all in Montreal.

In Judy's memoir A Cry in Unison, she talks of her loving memories spending Jewish holidays with friends and family. In particular, she remembers Purim: a day of commemoration for the saving of Jewish peoples, where she and other children would indulge in endless baking. She recalls the scents of cinnamon, cocoa, and nutmeg mixing in the air while hungrily waiting to eat her mother’s baked goods, In particular, Judy cannot live to forget Rigó Jancsi: a luxurious Hungarian chocolate mousse pastry.

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