Penn alumna Sherrie Cohen remembers her parents receiving death threats when she was a young child, as they fought for school desegregation during the civil rights movement.
She said she "was raised on pickets," and at just five years old, she was registering people to vote.
"I really absorbed that activist environment. That's the greatest way to grow up -- to live the life of every movement and help bring about justice in our lifetime," Sherrie said.
Her parents, Penn alumni David and Florence Cohen, were honored Monday with the Paul Robeson Social Justice Award at Zellerbach Theatre in the Bread & Roses Community Fund's 17th annual Tribute to Change.
The award is given to individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to social change.
Bread & Roses provides grants and technical assistance to groups committed to bringing about positive change in the Delaware Valley. Last year, it distributed more than $300,000 to support projects furthering social and economic justice.
More than 700 guests attended the event, which raised $56,000.
"Every movement for social change, they've been there," Sherrie said.
David Cohen, who chairs the Law and Government Committee on City Council, was particularly pleased by the event and by the message he received from University President Amy Gutmann.
Cohen has been somewhat of an adversary of the University in the past, for example when he sided with Graduate Employees Together-University of Pennsylvania in its bid to unionize.
Calling it the "first time I had a friendly reception from the University," he noted that it was also the first time he was congratulated as an alumnus for his lifetime of service. "It was a refreshing change."
"I spent my life acting in the way I would like to ... trying to fix the problems of the world and ... communities," he said, adding that he enjoyed "feeling the world would be a little bit better because" of his work.
Cohen "is a fierce fighter. He's not just an advocate, he does everything possible," Sherrie said, adding that her mother is equally tenacious.
"Together, they're quite a team," she said.
The children of immigrants from Russia and Poland, Sherrie's parents met as activists in the United Federal Workers Union in 1938. Ever since, they have worked together to help minorities during times of crises such as the civil rights movement and the McCarthy era.
"They stayed true to their beliefs throughout the years, which is really something," Sherrie added.
While calling grantees in preparation for the event, coordinator Jennie Sheeks said that many praised the efforts of the Cohens.
"Everyone goes on and on," she said. "Just stories and stories of the relationships [the Cohens] have built in the community."
"Dave and Florence have been the most supportive honorees," she added.
Friends of the Cohens wrote fond memories and letters of thanks that were assembled in a booklet available at the event.
Phil Lord of the Tenant Union Representative Network wrote, "Whether the issue be South African apartheid or homelessness or heartless tax reform, David and Florence seemed to always be on the correct side, the side where the people were and (win or lose) the side that mattered."
Recent accomplishments highlighted by those who wrote in included stopping the construction of a trash-to-steam plant in residential South Philadelphia; providing pro bono legal representation for community organizations and families who could not afford the price of a lawyer; and getting re-elected year after year while spending minimal amounts on campaigning.
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