During the week, Edgar and Charles were among a handful of Jews sent to private Anglophone schools, where they attended chapel and ate pork.

Following his father's death, in 1971, Bronfman took over as president, treasurer and director of Distillers Corporation-Seagram Ltd. His son, Edgar Jr., succeeded him as chief executive officer of the company in 1994.

[9][10][11][12] In 1983, Bronfman suggested that "American Jews should abandon their strongest weapon, the Jackson–Vanik amendment, as a sign of goodwill that challenges the Soviets to respond in kind.

Carrying a note from Shimon Peres, Bronfman met with Gorbachev, and initiated talks of a Soviet Jewish airlift.

The Russians know the Soviet Jewry issue is tied to trade ... My guess is that over a period of time, five to ten years, some of our goals will be achieved."

Together, Bronfman and the World Jewish Congress delegates advocated for the freeing of the Jews living under Soviet rule.

Speaking before the Special Session on Disarmament, Bronfman said, "world peace cannot tolerate the denial of the legitimacy of Israel or any other nation-state ... [and the] charge that Zionism is racism is an abomination.

Bronfman said of this visit, "By their actions, they are indicating that they are eager to get the question of Jewish rights and emigration off the bargaining table.

Waldheim had served as an intelligence officer in a unit of the army that participated in the transfer of Greek Jews to death camps.

On May 5, 1987, Bronfman spoke to the World Jewish Congress saying Waldheim was "part and parcel of the Nazi killing machine".

Waldheim subsequently filed a lawsuit against Bronfman, but dropped the suit shortly after, due to a lack of evidence in his favor.

[18] According to Joel Bainerman, in 1991 he was appointed to the International Jewish Committee for Inter-religious Consultations to conduct official contacts between the Vatican and the State of Israel.

In exchange for the settlement money, both parties agreed to release the Swiss banks and government from any claims regarding the Holocaust.

[33] At his memorial held in January 2014, Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said of Bronfman, "Edgar was never shy of pressing an issue in the face of injustice," as she spoke about the many causes he championed in his lifetime.

In 2003, a Forbes magazine article reported that Bronfman took a course from NXIVM under the leadership of Keith Raniere, endorsing it, but had since "grown troubled" due to the "emotional and financial investment" daughters Clare and Sara were giving to Raniere's group, remarking that Clare had loaned NXIVM $2 million, though she denied this.

"[53] Major points of focus for The Samuel Bronfman Foundation are pluralism, intermarriage, community engagement – especially youth – and making Jewish knowledge accessible to Jews of all backgrounds.

In an article, journalist Ami Eden writes about Bronfman, who chose to incorporate meaningful Jewish traditions into his life, all the while continuing to educate himself about the religion until his final days.

Bronfman also promoted the idea that Jewish organizations needed to stop using fear as a selling point, but rather encourage ordinary Jews to take a deeper interest in the substantive heritage they have been born into.

Specifically, while much of the American Jewish community saw intermarriage as an epidemic to be curbed, Bronfman considered the trend an opportunity for Jews to learn further with their non-Jewish partners.

[65] In 1986 Bronfman was honored with the Chevalier de la Légion d'honneur (Legion of Honour), from the Government of France.