Judy Feld Carr
Encyclopedia
Judith Feld Carr, CM
(born 1938) is a Canadian Jewish musician
and human rights
activist known for secretly smuggling thousands of Jews
out of Syria
over a period of 28 years.
. but grew up in Sudbury, Ontario
. She attained a Mus.Bac. in music education and a Mus.M. in musicology and music education from the University of Toronto
. Feld Carr taught high school music in Toronto for many years and also taught university musicology.
from the Syrian government. The process took over 28 years, in complete secrecy to protect the lives of those in danger. The Jews were either smuggled out of Syria, or ransomed, the majority of them emigrating to Israel
or New York
. Feld Carr described the venture: "We were buying Jews, one by one, from a hostile government. It was the best-kept secret in the Jewish world."
Her work ostensibly focused on creating cells with Syrians temporarily abroad, to develop a reliable and secure information network, with coded language based on Chinese cuisine and alcohol. Her nickname was Gin, but she was also known as Mrs. Judy, or simply “the woman from Canada”. Each Syrian Jew was rescued through individual bribes organized by Feld Carr. She recalled, "I bought them like you'd buy cattle...It was as crass and as disgusting a thing as anybody could have ever done." In certain cases, she arranged successful escapes when bribery failed.
Feld Carr facilitated the escape of at least 3,228 Jews, at first through her own work and later as chairwoman of the Canadian Jewish Congress's
National Task Force for Syrian Jewry.
Her story is told in Harold Troper
's book, The Ransomed of God: The Remarkable Story Of One Woman's Role in the Rescue of Syrian Jews, republished by Lester, Mason & Begg under the title The Rescuer: The Amazing True Story of How One Woman Helped Save the Jews of Syria.
; the Queen's Jubilee Medal
; the Abram Sachar Medal as "Woman of the Year", Brandeis University
; the Saul Hayes Human Rights Award of the Canadian Jewish Congress
; the Simon Wiesenthal
Award for Tolerance, Justice and Human Rights; and the University of Haifa
Humanitarian Award of Merit. She has received honorary degrees from Laurentian University
and the Jewish Theological Seminary
, New York.
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
(born 1938) is a Canadian Jewish musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
and human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
activist known for secretly smuggling thousands of Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
out of Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
over a period of 28 years.
Biography
Judith (Judy) Feld Carr was born in MontrealMontreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
. but grew up in Sudbury, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
. She attained a Mus.Bac. in music education and a Mus.M. in musicology and music education from the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
. Feld Carr taught high school music in Toronto for many years and also taught university musicology.
Rescue of Syrian Jewry
Feld Carr used funds from the Dr. Ronald Feld Fund for Jews in Arab Lands (established at Beth Tzedec Synagogue, Toronto in 1973), donated privately, to negotiate the release of Syrian JewsSyrian Jews
Syrian Jews are Jews who inhabit the region of the modern state of Syria, and their descendants born outside Syria. Syrian Jews derive their origin from two groups: from the Jews who inhabited the region of today's Syria from ancient times Syrian Jews are Jews who inhabit the region of the modern...
from the Syrian government. The process took over 28 years, in complete secrecy to protect the lives of those in danger. The Jews were either smuggled out of Syria, or ransomed, the majority of them emigrating to Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
or New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Feld Carr described the venture: "We were buying Jews, one by one, from a hostile government. It was the best-kept secret in the Jewish world."
Her work ostensibly focused on creating cells with Syrians temporarily abroad, to develop a reliable and secure information network, with coded language based on Chinese cuisine and alcohol. Her nickname was Gin, but she was also known as Mrs. Judy, or simply “the woman from Canada”. Each Syrian Jew was rescued through individual bribes organized by Feld Carr. She recalled, "I bought them like you'd buy cattle...It was as crass and as disgusting a thing as anybody could have ever done." In certain cases, she arranged successful escapes when bribery failed.
Feld Carr facilitated the escape of at least 3,228 Jews, at first through her own work and later as chairwoman of the Canadian Jewish Congress's
Canadian Jewish Congress
The Canadian Jewish Congress was one of the main lobby groups for the Jewish community in the country, although it often competed with the more conservative B'nai Brith Canada in that regard. At its dissolution, the president of the CJC was Mark Freiman. Its past co-presidents were Sylvain Abitbol...
National Task Force for Syrian Jewry.
Her story is told in Harold Troper
Harold Troper
Harold Troper is a Canadian writer, historian and academic. He specializes in Jewish Canadian history. Together with Irving Abella he authored None is Too Many, the story of the Canadian government's refusal to allow Jewish immigration from Europe during the Holocaust...
's book, The Ransomed of God: The Remarkable Story Of One Woman's Role in the Rescue of Syrian Jews, republished by Lester, Mason & Begg under the title The Rescuer: The Amazing True Story of How One Woman Helped Save the Jews of Syria.
Awards and recognition
Feld Carr has received numerous awards, including the Order of CanadaOrder of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
; the Queen's Jubilee Medal
Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal
The Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2002 to mark the 50th anniversary of the accession to the throne of Queen Elizabeth II...
; the Abram Sachar Medal as "Woman of the Year", Brandeis University
Brandeis University
Brandeis University is an American private research university with a liberal arts focus. It is located in the southwestern corner of Waltham, Massachusetts, nine miles west of Boston. The University has an enrollment of approximately 3,200 undergraduate and 2,100 graduate students. In 2011, it...
; the Saul Hayes Human Rights Award of the Canadian Jewish Congress
Canadian Jewish Congress
The Canadian Jewish Congress was one of the main lobby groups for the Jewish community in the country, although it often competed with the more conservative B'nai Brith Canada in that regard. At its dissolution, the president of the CJC was Mark Freiman. Its past co-presidents were Sylvain Abitbol...
; the Simon Wiesenthal
Simon Wiesenthal
Simon Wiesenthal KBE was an Austrian Holocaust survivor who became famous after World War II for his work as a Nazi hunter....
Award for Tolerance, Justice and Human Rights; and the University of Haifa
University of Haifa
The University of Haifa is a university in Haifa, Israel.The University of Haifa was founded in 1963 by Haifa mayor Abba Hushi, to operate under the academic auspices of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem....
Humanitarian Award of Merit. She has received honorary degrees from Laurentian University
Laurentian University
Laurentian University , was incorporated on March 28, 1960, is a mid-sized bilingual university in Greater Sudbury, Ontario, Canada....
and the Jewish Theological Seminary
Jewish Theological Seminary of America
The Jewish Theological Seminary of America is one of the academic and spiritual centers of Conservative Judaism, and a major center for academic scholarship in Jewish studies.JTS operates five schools: Albert A...
, New York.
External links
- Investiture of the Order of Canada, May 31, 2001
- Rescuing Syrian Jews
- Order of Canada Citation
- Mrs. Judy's Secret, a film about her, currently being produced