Monda Halpern, Western University
Adjunct Professor
History
London, Ontario
halpern@uwo.ca
Office:
(519) 661-2111 ext. 84980
Expert In
Bio/Research
Professor Halpern's current book project focuses on a 1931 shooting in the Ottawa Jewish community. Ben Edelson, a prominent jeweller, was accused of murdering fellow jeweller Jack Horwitz, who had been in a long-term affair with Edelson's wife Alice. After a sensational trial that captured the h...
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Bio/Research
Professor Halpern's current book project focuses on a 1931 shooting in the Ottawa Jewish community. Ben Edelson, a prominent jeweller, was accused of murdering fellow jeweller Jack Horwitz, who had been in a long-term affair with Edelson's wife Alice. After a sensational trial that captured the headlines of Ottawa newspapers, Edelson was acquitted of the charges. Halpern is using this case to help illuminate trends in Ontario society related to the interconnected issues of ethnicity, gender, and class. In particular, she is examining reactions to the shooting by both the Jewish and non-Jewish communities, especially in the context of the anti-Semitism that pervaded Ontario in the 1920s and 30s. She is also investigating how the middle-class status combined with the immigrant background of the Edelsons might have shaped attitudes about them against the backdrop of the Depression. As well, she is studying the ways in which the differing reputations of Mrs. Edelson and Mrs. Horwitz during and after the trial spoke to varying perceptions of women in this post-suffrage era.
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