Alex Bittelman Papers
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Abstract
Alex Bittelman, Communist activist and theoretician, was one of the founders of the Jewish Communist movement in the United States. He joined the Communist Party in 1919 and held a number of responsible positions until his expulsion in 1959. The collection consists of manuscripts, clippings and off-prints of various unpublished and published writings, including the book-length "The Bolshevik Revolution and its Historic Consequences," manuscripts of Communist Party USA programmatic and internal discussion documents, correspondence relating to Bittelman's writings, correspondence between Bittelman and William Z. Foster (some in relation to Bittelman's assistance to Foster in his writing endeavors), legal documents relating to Bittelman's indictment under the Smith Act and to the U.S. government's attempt to deport him. Some of the material is in Yiddish, including clippings reviewing Bittelman's writings. Topics include Communism and the Jewish people, Marxist theory, and political economy.
Historical/Biographical Note
Alex Bittelman, Communist activist and theoretician, was one of the founders of the Jewish Communist movement in the United States. Born in the Ukraine, Bittelman was active in the Jewish Labor Bund before emigrating to the U.S. in 1912, where he joined the Socialist Party. In 1919 he helped lead the left wing of the SP into the newly established Communist Party, and became secretary of its Jewish Section. He became closely associated with William Z. Foster throughout his Party career until his expulsion in 1959. After prosecution and attempted deportation (as he was not a U.S. citizen) under the Smith Act, he served three years in federal prison. For many years he wrote the "Questions and Answers" column for the Daily Workerand the "Review of the Month" column for the Party's theoretical magazine, The Communist(later Political Affairs). He served as a member of the Party's Political Bureau at various times.
Arrangement
The folders are arranged alphabetically within each series.
The files are grouped into five series:
Missing Title
- I, Writings, Articles and Notes, 1931-1971
- II, Communist Party Documents, 1942-1971
- III, Correspondence, 1944-1972
- IV, Legal Papers, 1950-1969
- V, Typescripts, Undated
Scope and Content Note
The collection consists of manuscripts, clippings and off-prints of various unpublished and published writings, including the book-length "The Bolshevik Revolution and its Historic Consequences," manuscripts of Communist Party USA programmatic and internal discussion documents, as well as writings by others. The collection also contains clippings, correspondence and notes, in Yiddish, relating to Bittelman's writing for the Morning Freiheit, the Communist Party's Yiddish-language newspaper. An unpublished typescript titled "Things I Have Learned" describes Bittleman's childhood and radical activities in Russia; his arrival in the United States in 1912; the formation of the American Communist Party; comments on its important personalities including Earl Browder, William Z. Foster, Jay Lovestone, Charles E. Ruthenberg and many others; his reflections on the New Deal and Cold War, and concern for Jewish survival.
Correspondence in the collection relates to Bittelman's writings and political activity, including correspondence between Bittelman and William Z. Foster, some in relation to Bittelman's assistance to Foster in his writing endeavors. Legal documents relate to Bittelman's indictment under the Smith Act, and to the U.S. government's attempt to deport him.
Topics of particular interest to Bittelman include Communism and the Jewish people, Marxist theory, and political economy.
Note: In the Box and Folder List some item-level contents lists received with the 1983 donation of material have been included.
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Conditions Governing Access
Materials are open without restrictions.
Conditions Governing Use
Any rights (including copyright and related rights to publicity and privacy) held by Alexander Bittelman were transferred to New York University in 2009 by Vladimir Posse (Alexander Bittelman's nephew). Permission to publish or reproduce materials in this collection must be secured from Tamiment Library. Please contact tamiment.wagner@nyu.edu, (212) 998-2630.
Preferred Citation
Published citations should take the following form:
Identification of item, date; Collection name; Collection number; box number; folder number;
Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
Elmer Holmes Bobst Library
70 Washington Square South
New York, NY 10012, New York University Libraries.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated by Max Gordon in the early 1950's; an additional accession was purchased from Alex Bittelman's widow, Mrs. Hittelman (whose first name could not be identified), in 1983. The accession number associated with the gift and purchase is 1983.007.
An autobiographical typescript titled "Things I Have Learned" was donated by Alex Bittelman in 1974. The accession number associated with this gift is 1974.003.
Materials found in repository were added to collection in 2014. The accession number associated with these materials is 2014.158.
