Vivianne Schinasi-Silver: 42 Keys to the Second Exodus

Listen to Vivianne M. Schinasi-Silver tell her immigration story and discuss the Sephardic women’s community in Montreal. Vivianne is a writer, teacher, feminist activist and Jewish community leader. Vivianne is part of the last wave of Egyptian Jews who immigrated to Canada after the 1956 Suez Crisis. Fifty years later, in 2007, Schinasi-Silver published her first memoir, Forty Two Keys to the Second Exodus. She also published a book of poetry, entitled From the Foot of the Pyramids (2000), and Under My Father’s Tallis (1989). She earned a B.A. degree in Psychology and French, a College Teaching Diploma with Specialization in Teaching French as a Second Language, as well as an M.A. degree in Administration and Policy Studies of Education at McGill University. Vivianne became a teacher first at Dawson College and later at John Abbott where she held the position of Coordinator of Women’s Studies and Gender Relations for eleven years. While an educator, she became a member of the Board of the McGill Center for Teaching and Research on Women. While working as a teacher in the 80s, Vivianne created her own Human Development Services called "The Silver Lining," specializing in the topic of women as leaders. Furthermore, she was the Chairperson of The Career Women’s Network of Federation CJA from 1986 to 1988 and was one of the leaders of the Women’s Mission that went to Israel in 1987. She is currently a member of the executive committee of L’Association des juifs originaires d’egypte (AJOE). The Canadian Jewish News has written about her activism in the Montreal community, and she is currently continuously writing articles for the Gazette. Her extensive resume of ongoing accomplishments is best resumed in her philosophy: “For me, there is no greater joy than to see someone soar and reach the stars. To have been part of their journey is my blessing.”