At Washington University, Bob was Editor of Student Life, the Washington University student newspaper and of The Writ, the law school student newspaper.  At both newspapers, Bob aggressively advocated for equal rights for all citizens and against racial segregation in all of its forms, including against restaurants that refused to serve African-American students.  Bob was President of the Missouri Pi Chapter of Pi Lambda Phi fraternity, was one of the first to admit an  African American member.  He was also a member of Omicron Delta Kappa, the national leadership honorary society.
    After receiving his law degree and becoming a member of the Missouri Bar, Bob worked for five years as Administrative Assistant, Staff Attorney, Speech Writer and Press Secretary for then St. Louis County Executive Lawrence K. Roos.  Among Bob's staff assignments were working with the Juvenile Court, County Welfare, the Human Development Corporation (anti-poverty agency) and the St. Louis County Human Relations Commission.
Since 1964, Bob has served the County Human Relations  Commission as staff person, member or Chairman.  He continues to serve as Chairman of the St.
Louis County Human Relations Commission which enforces the County ordinances banning discrimination based on race, religion, national origin or ancestry, sexual orientation or gender or disability.
    Bob Cohn joined the St. Louis Jewish Light in July 1969, and served as Chief Editor and later Editor-in-Chief/Publisher until his semi-retirement at the end of 2004.  Bob continues his very active association with the Jewish Light as Editor-in-Chief Emeritus, contributing editorials, major articles, reviews, interviews and hard news.  The Jewish Light is the local weekly community newspaper serving the 60,000-member Jewish community of St.
Louis, going into 13,000 homes each week and having a readership of  more than 45,000.  There is also an on-line edition of the Jewish Light.
    Bob has won numerous local and national awards for his journalism and community service.  Among the awards are 12 Simon  Rockower Awards for Excellence in North American Jewish Journalism and two Joseph Polakoff Lifetime Achievement Awards from the American Jewish Press Association, of which he is a past President.
    Bob has also been honored with the Albert Einstein Award from the St.
Louis Chapter of the American Society for Technion; a special commendation award from the Anti-Defamation League; Community Service Award from the St.
Louis Chapter of the American Jewish Committee; the Democracy in Action Award from the American Jewish Congress; the Americanism Award from the Missouri Department of the Jewish War Veterans USA; the B'nai B'rith Guardian of the Menorah Award and the Jerusalem Award from the State of Israel Bonds Organization.  He also received the Fred A. Goldstein Award for Outstanding Jewish Community Service from the Jewish Federation of St.
Louis.
    In addition to serving as Chairman of the St. Louis County Human Relations Commission, Bob is past President of the St. Louis Region of the American Jewish Congress, past President of the American Jewish Press Association, founding President of the International Jewish Media Association and past President of the Press Club of Metropolitan St. Louis.
He is also a past President of Legal Advocates for Abused Women and of Congregation Shaare Emeth, where he taught in the Religious School for 44 years.  Bob has also taught courses for the Central Agency for Jewish Education, both adult and high school and for OASIS and the Jewish Community Center and Washington University.
    Bob has visited Jewish communities in 30 countries, including 18 trips to the State of Israel, plus visits to Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Morocco, the former Soviet Union, South Africa, Brazil and Mexico.
    Bob and his wife, Barbara Berg Cohn, reside in Clayton.  They are the parents of three children:  Scott (married to the former Julie Bohm), of Chesterfield and Julie (married to Paul Greene) of Falmouth, Maine and Emily Cohn, of Wakefield, Rhode Island and St. Louis.  Scott and Julie Cohn are the parents of Adam, Jeremy and Ellie Cohn and Julie and Paul Greene are the parents of Ben and Anna Greene.

About Bob Cohn's Civil Rights record