Biography
Emanuel Bronner was an entrepreneur and peace activist who created Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps. After his family was killed in the Holocaust, Bronner began traveling the United States to give lectures on his personal philosophy, which advocated for global unity regardless of race or religion. While he was speaking at the University of Chicago, his lecture was shut down by the school administration, which refused to allow him to continue and had him arrested for trespassing even though a student group had invited him to speak at the school. Bronner was then brought to Elgin State Mental Hospital, where he was civilly committed. He was held for over a year before he escaped from the asylum. He later stated that the electric shock experiments he underwent at the hospital had resulted in his blindness.
