Jean Kahn
Jean Kahn (born May 17, 1929 in Strasbourg ; † August 18, 2013 in Strasbourg ) was a French lawyer and human rights activist . From 1991 to 1995 he was President of the European Jewish Congress .
Life
In his youth, Kahn was a member of the Jewish Boy Scouts. In 1943 he fled with his family from France, which was occupied by the German Wehrmacht, to Spain . After the Second World War , he studied law at the University of Strasbourg . He received his doctorate and was admitted to the bar in 1953. Kahn later worked in the family's own textile company.
In 1969 he became a functionary in the Jewish community in Strasbourg and later took on tasks in the Bas-Rhin department . From 1989 to 1995 he was President of the Conseil Représentatif des Institutions juives de France (CRIF). From 1991 to 1995 he was also President of the European Jewish Congress (EJC) and Vice President of the World Jewish Congress . From 1995 to 2008 he headed the Consistoire central israélite .
In the early 1990s he was active as a mediator in the former Yugoslavia and was a human rights activist against racism and xenophobia . He was u. a. President of the French government organization Commission nationale consultative des droits de l'homme . In court he denied lawsuits against u. a. Jean-Marie Le Pen , chairman of the right-wing populist / right-wing extremist Front National , which led to its lifting of parliamentary immunity .
Kahn was married and had two children. He died in 2013 and was buried in the Jewish cemetery in Strasbourg-Cronenbourg .
Awards (selection)
- Member of the Legion of Honor (Grand Officer)
- Ordre national du Mérite (Commander)
- Federal Cross of Merit (Grand Cross)
- Honorary doctorate from the University of Haifa
Prix Jean-Kahn
In his honor, the European Monitoring Center on Racism and Xenophobia has been awarding the Jean-Kahn Prix against Racism and Discrimination in Europe since 2003 .
literature
- Gideon Kouts : Kahn, Jean . In: Michael Berenbaum , Fred Skolnik (Ed.): Encyclopaedia Judaica . Volume 11, 2nd Edition, Macmillan Reference, Detroit 2007, ISBN 978-0-02-865939-8 , p. 721.
Web links
- Jean Kahn (Jewish Virtual Library)
- Interview with Hélène Targan (November 2003)
Individual evidence
- ^ Former French Jewish leader Jean Kahn dies at 84 , World Jewish Congress, August 19, 2013.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Kahn, Jean |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | French lawyer and human rights activist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | May 17, 1929 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Strasbourg |
| DATE OF DEATH | 18th August 2013 |
| Place of death | Strasbourg |