1. Esther Vilenska was an Israeli communist politician, journalist and author who served as a member of the Knesset for Maki between 1951 and 1959, and then again from 1961 to 1965.
10 Facts About Esther Vilenska
1. 2.
Esther Vilenska attended the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, gaining a BA in sociology and an MA in History.
3.
Esther Vilenska joined the politbureau of Maki when it was formed upon Israeli independence in 1948, and in 1949 became a member of the executive committee of the Histadrut, a role she served in until 1973.
4.
Esther Vilenska was elected to the Knesset in 1951, stepping down from Tel Aviv city council.
5.
Esther Vilenska was a member of the Knesset until 1959, and then again from 1961 until 1965.
6.
Esther Vilenska was a regular contributor to leftist publications around the world, including the Saturday Morning Freiheit, a Yiddish language weekly published in New York.
7.
Esther Vilenska's articles focused on identifying trends within the Israeli left and finding solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but often delved into cultural and international issues, such as the jailing of the African-American communist activist Angela Davis.
8.
Esther Vilenska published numerous pamphlets and several books in Hebrew, Russian, Yiddish and English.
9.
Esther Vilenska met and married fellow Maki leader, Meir Vilner in the 1940s.
10.
Esther Vilenska thereafter married Zvi Breitstein, an editor of Kol HaAm.