Additional information
by Irene W. Leigh (Author)
From her parents, deaf psychologist Irene W. Leigh learned how quickly safety could be yanked away. Her parents, Jews who barely escaped Nazi Germany on the eve of World War II, tried to shield Leigh from harm, never talking about the horrors they endured, and it was not until recently that she began to discover the truth by uncovering a shocking document. Having rebuilt their lives from scratch, first in England and then in America, Leigh's parents passed down a legacy of ambition, persistence, and achievement, shaping her resilience in response to bias and discrimination. In this deeply personal memoir, Hiding the Holocaust, Leigh explores how this unspoken history and inherited trauma has informed her personal, familial, academic, and career experiences. Using a lifespan narrative structure focusing on memories, reflections, and recreated dialogue, Leigh narrates the subtle ways in which Holocaust trauma and loss affected not only her parents but also herself as a deaf child, teen, adult, and parent.
Author Biography
Irene W. Leigh is a clinical psychologist with a distinguished career in research and teaching, focusing on deaf identity, parenting, attachment, cochlear implants, assessment, psychotherapy and counseling. Leigh is a fellow of the American Psychological Association. She taught in the clinical psychology doctoral program and chaired the Department of Psychology at Gallaudet University, where she holds the title of Professor Emerita and was selected as a distinguished faculty member.
