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.
Education
Born in Vilnius in Poland (today in Lithuania), Vilenska was active in Hashomer Hatzair in Vilnius, the city in which she attended high school, before emigrating to Mandatory Palestine in 1938. She attended the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, gaining a Bachelor in sociology and an Master of Arts in History.
Career
Vilenska joined the Palestine Communist Party in 1940, and in 1943 was appointed editor of the newspaper Kol HaAm (lit Voice of the People), becoming chief editor in 1947. In 1944 she was elected to the House of Representatives. Also in 1949 she was elected onto Tel Aviv"s city council.
She was elected to the Knesset in 1951, stepping down from Tel Aviv city council, serving until 1959, and then again from 1961 until 1965.
Her tenure in the Knesset was marked by outspoken opposition to the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories, vigorous defense of civil liberties and a desire to improve economic and social conditions for women. Israeli Communist Opposition), serving as editor of its monthly paper.
Journalism
In addition to her political work, Vilenska was also a widely published writer She was a regular contributor to leftist publications around the world, including the Saturday Morning Freiheit, a Yiddish language weekly published in New New York
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.
Vilenska published numerous pamphlets and several books in Hebrew, Russian, Yiddish and English. Personal life
Vilenska later married Zvi Breidstein, also an editor of Kol HaAm. Vilenska and Breidstein lived in the Kiryat Shalom section of Tel Aviv and had two children.
Politics
Political career
In 1973 she left Maki and founded a new party, Aki (Hebrew: אק"י, an acronym for Opozitzia Komunistit Yisraelit (Hebrew: אופוזיציה קומוניסטית ישראלית), literature
Membership
She joined the politbureau of Maki when it was formed upon Israeli independence in 1948, and in 1949 became a member of executive committee of the Histadrut, a role she served in until 1973.