The politics of non-assimilation : The American Jewish Left in the Twentieth Century /
Verbeeten, David Randall,
The politics of non-assimilation : The American Jewish Left in the Twentieth Century / David Randall Verbeeten. - DeKalb : NIU Press, (c)2017. - 1 online resource
Revised version of the author's thesis (doctoral)--University of Cambridge, 2012.
Includes bibliographies and index.
Alexander Bittelman, the Communist party and the first generation -- The American Jewish Congress and the second generation -- New Jewish Agenda and the third generation.
Over the course of the twentieth century, Eastern European Jews in the United States developed a left-wing political tradition. Their political preferences went against a fairly broad correlation between upward mobility and increased conservatism or Republican partisanship. Many scholars have sought to explain this phenomenon by invoking antisemitism, an early working-class experience, or a desire to integrate into a universal social order. In this original study, David Verbeeten instead focuses on the ways in which left-wing ideologies and movements helped to mediate and preserve Jewish identity in the context of modern tendencies toward bourgeois assimilation and ethnic dissolution. Verbeeten pursues this line of inquiry through case studies that highlight the political activities and aspirations of three "generations" of American Jews. The life of Alexander Bittelman provides a lens to examine the first generation. Born in Ukraine in 1892, Bittelman moved to New York City in 1912 and went on to become a founder of the American Communist Party after World War I. Verbeeten explores the second generation by way of the American Jewish Congress, which came together in 1918 and launched significant campaigns against discrimination within civil society before, during, and especially after World War II. Finally, he considers the third generation in relation to the activist group New Jewish Agenda, which operated from 1980 to 1992 and was known for its advocacy of progressive causes and its criticism of particular Israeli governments and policies. By focusing on individuals and organizations that have not previously been subjects of extensive investigation, Verbeeten contributes original research to the fields of American, Jewish, intellectual, and radical history. His insightful study will appeal to specialists and general readers interested in those areas.
9781501757860
2016021505
Bittelman, Alex, 1890-1982.
American Jewish Congress.
New Jewish Agenda (Organization)
Jews, East European--History--United States--20th century.
Jews, East European--Cultural assimilation--United States.
Immigrants--United States.
Electronic Books.
E184 / .P655 2017
The politics of non-assimilation : The American Jewish Left in the Twentieth Century / David Randall Verbeeten. - DeKalb : NIU Press, (c)2017. - 1 online resource
Revised version of the author's thesis (doctoral)--University of Cambridge, 2012.
Includes bibliographies and index.
Alexander Bittelman, the Communist party and the first generation -- The American Jewish Congress and the second generation -- New Jewish Agenda and the third generation.
Over the course of the twentieth century, Eastern European Jews in the United States developed a left-wing political tradition. Their political preferences went against a fairly broad correlation between upward mobility and increased conservatism or Republican partisanship. Many scholars have sought to explain this phenomenon by invoking antisemitism, an early working-class experience, or a desire to integrate into a universal social order. In this original study, David Verbeeten instead focuses on the ways in which left-wing ideologies and movements helped to mediate and preserve Jewish identity in the context of modern tendencies toward bourgeois assimilation and ethnic dissolution. Verbeeten pursues this line of inquiry through case studies that highlight the political activities and aspirations of three "generations" of American Jews. The life of Alexander Bittelman provides a lens to examine the first generation. Born in Ukraine in 1892, Bittelman moved to New York City in 1912 and went on to become a founder of the American Communist Party after World War I. Verbeeten explores the second generation by way of the American Jewish Congress, which came together in 1918 and launched significant campaigns against discrimination within civil society before, during, and especially after World War II. Finally, he considers the third generation in relation to the activist group New Jewish Agenda, which operated from 1980 to 1992 and was known for its advocacy of progressive causes and its criticism of particular Israeli governments and policies. By focusing on individuals and organizations that have not previously been subjects of extensive investigation, Verbeeten contributes original research to the fields of American, Jewish, intellectual, and radical history. His insightful study will appeal to specialists and general readers interested in those areas.
9781501757860
2016021505
Bittelman, Alex, 1890-1982.
American Jewish Congress.
New Jewish Agenda (Organization)
Jews, East European--History--United States--20th century.
Jews, East European--Cultural assimilation--United States.
Immigrants--United States.
Electronic Books.
E184 / .P655 2017