Esther Brunstein
A prominent figure in the campaign for a Holocaust Memorial Day, Esther Brunstein, who has died aged 88, grew up with her parents Sarah Rifka and Ephraim Fishel Zylberberg, sharing their liberal Jewish values. Born Esther Zylberg in Lodz, the youngest of three children, she was sent to Auschwitz in a cattle truck with her mother in August, 1944, but they were separated and her mother was killed. At the end of the War, Esther was liberated from Belsen and evacuated to Sweden. She settled in London with her only surviving family member, her brother Peretz.
As a leading member of the Yiddish Theatre she met her husband, scenic designer, Stanislaw Brunstein, and In the 1990s began campaigning on human rights and Holocaust denial at huge rallies. She opened the Holocaust gallery at the Imperial War Museum, London, alongside the Queen. She shared her prewar childhood memories of life and her Holocaust experiences at hundreds of school visits.
A passionate internationalist and human rights activist she addressed the United Nations on the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Her testimony of the death march she endured inspired a walking arts project led by her daughter Lorna Brunstein and co-artist Richard White. Stanislav died in 1994. Esther is survived by their daughters, Lorna and Denise, five grandchildren and two greatgrandchildren.