Barbara Coopersmith was a propeller mechanic in Seattle during World War II when her landlord, a Japanese-American, was shipped off to an internment camp.
“She was horrified,” said her daughter JoAnne LaFleur, who lives in Springfield, Ore. The experience started Coopersmith on a lifelong career working for civil rights.
Coopersmith, who died June 8, 21 days short of her 85th birthday, was for decades associate director of the Anti-Defamation League’s Mountain States regional office.
A service will be planned later in the summer.
Coopersmith was “outraged” at any discrimination against any person or any group for any reason.
She worked on every issue affecting rights: employment, segregation, housing and even integration at YMCA swimming pools, said Sheldon Steinhauser, who was director of the ADL in Colorado for years and Coopersmith’s boss.
“She was also an expert on hate groups and had files and files and files” of such groups in the area and elsewhere. Steinhauser said Coopersmith “was my mentor in the whole field of civil rights. She was way ahead of the cusp.”
Coopersmith had marched for civil rights in the South and helped with voter registration. Locally she sometimes “infiltrated” hate groups to gather information. She acknowledged that she had made enemies, “but they’re the kind of people you want for enemies.”
Her acceptance of everyone was private as well as public. When she entertained, “she had the most diverse group of guests you could imagine,” said Steinhauser.
Coopersmith had plenty of opinions, was outspoken and would take issue with anyone who uttered something even “remotely” racist, said her daughter.
But “Barbara cringed” at public speaking, said Steinhauser.
Ruth Steiner, a civil rights colleague of Coopersmith, once said that Coopersmith “had a short speech and a long speech” prepared for accepting an award. “The short speech was ‘thank you’ and the long speech was ‘thank you very much.”‘
Although Coopersmith and others in the ADL office received threats, “no fear was compelling enough to keep her from doing what had to be done,” said Steinhauser.
Coopersmith retired from the ADL in 1989 after 38 years.
Barbara Quist was born on June 29, 1922, in Bozeman, Mont., and graduated from high school there. She attended the University of Montana in Missoula but before finishing, she joined the war effort. In addition to Seattle, she worked at Denver’s Lowry Air Force Base as a propeller mechanic.
Two marriages ended in divorce: to William Carpenter and Joseph Coopersmith.
After the war she began volunteering at ADL, then became a secretary and later joined the staff.
Coopersmith was a lifelong Republican, “which was a puzzle to her colleagues, most of whom were Democrats,” said LaFleur.
But Coopersmith told LaFleur, “‘I was born a Republican and I want to keep the party on its toes.’ Later she was horrified at the right turn” of the Republican Party, said LaFleur.
In addition to LaFleur, she is survived by another daughter, Carleen McGhee of Denver, four grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Virginia Culver can be reached at 303-954-1223 or vculver@denverpost.com.
