Shaughnessy Cohen
| Shaughnessy Cohen | |
|---|---|
| Member of Parliament for Windsor—St. Clair |
|
|
In office October 25, 1993 – December 9, 1998 |
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| Preceded by | Howard McCurdy |
| Succeeded by | Rick Limoges |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Elizabeth Shaughnessy Murray February 11, 1948 London, Ontario |
| Died | December 9, 1998 (aged 50) Ottawa, Ontario |
| Political party | Liberal |
| Spouse(s) | Jerry Cohen |
| Residence | Amherstburg, Ontario |
| Profession | Lawyer |
Elizabeth Shaughnessy Cohen, née Murray (February 11, 1948 – December 9, 1998) was a Canadian politician who represented the riding of Windsor—St. Clair for the Liberal Party of Canada from 1993 until her death in 1998.
She was born in London, Ontario, and grew up in Thamesville. She studied English literature and sociology at the University of Windsor, and taught at St. Clair College before returning to law school. She married Jerry Cohen, a psychology professor, in 1971. She had originally intended to keep her own surname, but opted to take her husband's name when she realized it would make her both Irish and Jewish.
She was called to the Bar of Ontario in 1979, and worked as a lawyer until her election to Parliament.
Cohen stood as the Liberal candidate in Windsor—St. Clair in the 1988 election, but lost to New Democratic Party incumbent Howard McCurdy. However, in the 1993 election, Cohen defeated McCurdy for the seat. Following the election, she was briefly the subject of controversy when she and her husband were sued for $200,000 in unpaid debt, but Cohen blamed the situation on the costs of conducting a political campaign and the controversy soon subsided after she agreed to a debt consolidation plan.
Her first political action after being sworn in as a Member of Parliament was a letter requesting that the federal government building in Windsor be named after former MP Paul Martin, Sr., a request which the government accepted. After the first sitting of the new parliament in January 1994, Cohen was the first newly-elected MP to be subjected to a critical profile in Frank, although both Cohen and the Windsor Star criticized the profile's accuracy.
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