Alan Maisel and Bernard Catcher collection on Brooklyn politics
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Abstract
The collection contains the political ephemera, photographs, and newsletters collected by Alan Maisel, dating from 1953 to 2014. It documents a Brooklyn chapter of the Jewish service organization B'nai B'rith, Jewish political activism in Brooklyn, political activism within the Democratic party in Brooklyn, and information about political campaigning. It includes newsletters from B'nai B'rith, photographs of political leaders, and a variety of endorsement letters and political campaign ephemera.
Biographical / Historical
Alan N. Maisel was born on July 25, 1946 in Brooklyn.
Alan Maisel served as Chief of Staff to Congressman Charles Schumer and was Chief of Staff to Assemblyman Frank R. Seddio, his predecessor in the State Assembly. He was elected to the New York State Assembly in 2006 and served until December 2013, when he left to become the City Council member representing the 46th District, encompassing parts of Mill Basin, Canarsie, Marine Park, and the Flatlands. Maisel retired from the New York City Council in 2021.
Maisel is a member of the District #1 Regional Board of B'nai B'rith, a two term chairman of the District 22 Community School Board, and a long-time member of Community Board 18 which encompasses most of the 46th Council District.
Bernard Catcher, in whose honor the collection was donated, was a Democratic District Leader representing Mill Basin. Catcher was also involved in several political campaigns including those of Carl Kruger, Anthony Weiner, and Alan Maisel. Catcher and Maisel were both Vice Presidents of the Madison Club, a Democratic political organization based in Flatbush, during the early 1970s. Catcher began running campaigns alongside Anthony Genovese from the Thomas Jefferson Democratic Club in the late 1970s.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged in alphabetical order, and chronologically within subjects.
Content Description
The collection contains materials relating to Brooklyn politics collected by Alan Maisel and Bernard Catcher. The collection contains articles about local school districts and development in East Flatbush, ephemera relating to P.S. 119, endorsement letters and ephemera for a variety of state and local Democratic political candidates, and issues of newsletters related to B'nai B'rith. The collection also contains issues of "The Democrat," the Rambam League's "The Commentary," portraits of President Eisenhower, photographs of various local leaders in the late 60s and early 70s, press releases and newsletters from the Madison Club, and two scrapbooks.
Much of the political campaign ephemera consists of pamphlets and flyers for local Brooklyn district and Kings County candidates, such as those campaigning for judgeships and assembly positions. They also contain ephemera relating to Democratic primary candidates for Congress, Attorney General, and State Senate candidates. The majority of the political campaign ephemera dates from the mid 1980s to the early 2000s, with a small minority of materials dating from the 1960s, 1970s, and late 2000s.
The collection also contains various newsletters from local civic organizations, as well as two scrapbooks. The scrapbook "East Flatbush" contains information relating to racial integration in Flatbush schools, as well as a 1968 general study on East Flatbush. The second scrapbook, "Statistical Information on Population, Housing, Crime, Etc.," contains newspaper articles from various sources about restoration plans and development in different Brooklyn and greater New York/Long Island neighborhoods, as well as their racial and ethnic makeup and crime statistics. A large portion of the second scrapbook contains information relating to East Flatbush and East Flatbush schools. While many of the articles in the second volume are dated to the mid to late 1970s, many are also undated and do not contain their newspaper volume number or source.
The political ephemera and material on B'nai B'rith provide insight into the Brooklyn Jewish community and the political involvements of Brooklyn Jewish organizations. The ephemera and endorsements, such as the newsletters of the Madison Club, also provide insight into political issues and affiliations within different Brooklyn neighborhoods. Additionally, the ephemera and scrapbooks document shifting demographics and the fight over racial integration in schools in East Flatbush.
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Conditions Governing Access
Open to researchers without restriction.
Conditions Governing Use
While many items at the Center for Brooklyn History are unrestricted, we do not own reproduction rights to all materials. Be aware of the several kinds of rights that might apply: copyright, licensing and trademarks. The researcher assumes all responsibility for copyright questions.
Preferred Citation
Identification of item, date (if known); Alan Maisel collection on Brooklyn politics, 2016.001, Box and Folder number; Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Alan Maisel, 2016. This collection includes materials that were collected by both Alan Maisel and Bernard Catcher.
