Beznos Fanny

About

She was the second of four children. Her parents, Hersch Beznos and Sarah Grenitz, decided in 1912 to flee Russia and its growing antisemitism. They tried to reach the United States via Le Havre, but ultimately decided to settle in France, where they had family. By 1913, the family was living in Paris. To make a living, Hersch Beznos began selling second-hand furniture and working in the antique trade. Their fourth daughter, Blanche, was born in Paris in 1914. In 1921, Fanny was forced to abandon her studies and began working as a typist. She was active in the Republican Veterans Association and fought alongside the Young Antifascist Guards. In 1927, she joined the French Communist Party and was also active in the suffragette movement. In the same year, she met André Breton by chance at the Saint-Ouen flea market. She immediately formed a literary affinity with him and frequented the Surrealist circle. Her poems were published in various magazines alongside those of big names