Melanie Kaye/Kantrowitz Papers
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Abstract
Melanie Kaye/Kantrowitz (1945-2018) was an American writer, educator, and political activist whose efforts focused on economic and social justice. She was one of the founders of Jews for Racial and Economic Justice (JFREJ) and served as the organization's first Executive Director. She was also a college professor at various institutions, and taught courses on women's history, Jewish history, and comparative literature. The Melanie Kaye/Kantrowitz Papers reflect and document her professional and personal life dating from the 1970s through the 2010s. Material includes personal journals and datebooks; correspondence; course material; event and appearance files; published writings; and JFREJ organizational material.
Biographical Note
Melanie Kaye/Kantrowitz (1945-2018) was an American writer, educator, and political activist whose efforts focused on economic and social justice. She was one of the founders of Jews for Racial and Economic Justice (JFREJ) and served as the organization's first Executive Director. Kaye/Kantrowitz self-identified as a "Conscious Jew"; she was a member of the Jewish feminist organization Di Vilde Chayes, and her activism often focused on anti-semetism, anti-racism, and economic justice. She was additionally a co-founder of Beyond the Pale (weekly radio program of JFREJ), an editor for the publication Sinister Wisdom, and was on the steering committee for the New Jewish Agenda.
Kaye/Kantrowitz was a college professor who lectured on women's studies, comparative literature, urban studies, gender and queer studies, Jewish studies, and public policy programs at various institutions including Hamilton College, Vermont College, and Queens College. Kaye/Kantrowitz was a published essayist and poet, and authored several books including: We Speak in Code: Poems and Other Writings (1980); The Tribe of Dina: A Jewish Women's Anthology (1989); My Jewish Face, and Other Stories (1990); The Issue is Power: Essays on Women, Jews, Violence and Resistance (1995); and The Colors of Jews: Racial Politics and Radical Diasporism (2007).
Arrangement
This collection is organized into six series.
Series I. Writings
Series II. Teachings
Series III. Events and Appearances
Series IV. Journals, Notebooks, and Datebooks
Series V. Jews for Racial and Economic Justice (JFREJ)
Series VI. Correspondence
Scope and Contents
The Melanie Kaye/Kantrowitz Papers contain material dating from the 1970s to the 2010s documenting her personal life and professional career, as well as the ways in which her identity as a lesbian, anti-racism and economic justice activist, and member of the Jewish community influenced this work. This collection contains published writings including short stories, poetry, reviews, as well as essays and articles on anti-semitism, homophobia, immigration, racism and anti-racism, and relations between Israel and Palestine. Her college and university course syllabi and notes in this collection reflect topics she also wrote about and supported, including women's and Jewish history. Her correspondence reflects both her personal relationships with others and her life as an educator, writer, and activist during the 1970s to 2010s. Journals, notebooks, and datebooks provide a daily record of her life, but also were often used as inspiration for many of her creative writing projects. Event files containing programs and promotional material document the Jewish Left and feminist environment in the 1970s through 2000s through the wide range of conferences and panels she participated in. The majority of material in this collection related to Jews for Racial and Economic Justice (JFREJ) are publications, organization promotional material, and event fliers.
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Conditions Governing Access
Materials are open without restrictions.
Conditions Governing Use
This collection is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use materials in the collection in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
Preferred Citation
Identification of item, date; Melanie Kaye/Kantrowitz Papers; TAM 824; box number; folder number or item identifier; Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives, New York University.
Location of Materials
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated by Kaye/Kantrowitz's partner, Leslie Cagan, in April 2023. The accession number associated with this donation is 2023.052
Custodial History
The materials were originally stored in boxes in the donor and Melanie Kaye/Kantrowitz's home. Some materials may have previously been kept in Kaye/Kantrowitz's offices in Queens College before being transferred to her home. Between April 2022 and January 2023, the boxes were condensed from the original number, having been reboxed by the donor, after they reviewed materials and separated out what they felt was not relevant or personal in nature. The material did not have a specific arrangement or filing system, but there were clear groupings which included files on teaching, writings, journals, and JFREJ organizational material.
As of February, 2023 the donor will retain some of Kaye/Kantrowitz's original writings, but with a possibility of future donations. Similarly, as of the initial site visit, Kaye/Kantrowitz's computer files are not accessible.
Audiovisual Access Policies and Procedures
Audiovisual material have not been preserved and may not be available to researchers. Material not yet digitized will need to have access copies made before they can be used. To request an access copy, or if you are unsure if an item has been digitized, please contact Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives, special.collections@nyu.edu, 212-998-2596 with the collection name, collection number, and a description of the item requested. A staff member will respond to you with further information.
Appraisal
One carton of duplicate articles was shredded. The following were removed from the collection: one CD containing photographs used in the book The Colors of Jews; duplicate copies of JFREJ programs, publications, and event posters; and poetry and correspondence belonging to friend Maureen (thate were not related in any way to Kaye/Kantrowitz).
About this Guide
Processing Information
At the time of accessioning in June/July 2023, materials were rehoused in archival boxes and described in a box-level inventory.
In July/August 2023 all original folders were replaced with acid-free. Duplicates of press clippings, event programs, and promotional fliers were removed. Course readings folders were condensed from their individual folders and grouped together. Loose journals, notebooks, and datebooks were arranged in chronological order and foldered. Oversized material was unfolded and placed in appropriately-sized housing. Social security numbers on two agreements were redacted. The one audiocassette was numbered, labeled, and placed in a shared box. Titles were created by the processing archivist, often supplementing information provided on original folder titles. Potentially offensive terms considered outdated were retained by the processor when included in a title of essay or article, or college course.
The donor agreed the diaries and journals were not to be restricted with the understanding that although they were at times of a personal nature, these items were often the inspiration for many of Kaye/Kantrowitz's writings and stories.
