Bernard Joseph Lasky

From: https://www.isjl.org/mississippi-aberdeen-encyclopedia.html

Bernard Lasky was a conscientious business and community leader. During the Civil Rights era, white Aberdeen residents boycotted the Lasky store because Bernard was thought to be “soft” on segregation. Both Bernard and Dorothy participated in a group that worked with the FBI to dismantle a Ku Klux Klan terrorist cell targeting the Mississippi Jewish community. Bernard and Dorothy donated funds to pay informers.

The Laskys worked hard to preserve their Jewish faith, though they lived in a predominantly Christian area. They traveled to Columbus, Mississippi, for Shabbat services, and their four children attended Sunday School there as well. Bernard served as Temple president several times. The Laskys practiced in the Reform tradition. They did not keep kosher, but never had pork in their home. Their religious identity was strong, but they also maintained bonds with the non-Jewish members of their community.