Alfred Max Loewenthal Papers
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http://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/kt4v19r7f9 No online items Register of the Alfred Max Loewenthal papers Finding aid prepared by Dale Reed Hoover Institution Library and Archives © 2016 434 Galvez Mall Stanford University Stanford, CA 94305-6003 [email protected] URL: http://www.hoover.org/library-and-archives Register of the Alfred Max 80189 1 Loewenthal papers Title: Alfred Max Loewenthal papers Date (inclusive): 1886-1980 Collection Number: 80189 Contributing Institution: Hoover Institution Library and Archives Language of Material: English Physical Description: 59 manuscript boxes, 5 oversize boxes, 2 motion picture film reels(25.6 Linear Feet) Abstract: Correspondence, memoranda, reports, minutes, serial issues, other printed matter, and motion picture film relating to electrical workers' unions in the United States, to teachers' unions in the United States and abroad, and to socialism, communism, and Trotskyism in the United States and especially in the labor movement. Creator: Loewenthal, Alfred Max, 1916-1980 Hoover Institution Library & Archives Access The collection is open for research; materials must be requested at least two business days in advance of intended use. Publication Rights For copyright status, please contact the Hoover Institution Library & Archives. Acquisition Information Acquired by the Hoover Institution Library & Archives in 1980. Preferred Citation [Identification of item], Alfred Max Loewenthal papers, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives. 1916 Born, Newark, New Jersey 1941 Charter member, Local 447, United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers Union, Nutley, New Jersey 1948-1956 Business agent, Local 447, United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers Union (subsequently International Union of Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers) 1955-1965 Director, Union Leadership Academy, Rutgers University 1956-1961 Education director, District 4, International Union of Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers 1961-1965 Assistant to the president, District 4 (subsequently District 3), International Union of Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers 1963 Democratic Party candidate for mayor of Verona, New Jersey 1964 Candidate for Democratic Party nomination for Congress, 12th Congressional District of New Jersey 1965-1967 Assistant to the president, International Union of Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers 1967-1970 Public relations director, American Federation of Teachers 1970-1979 Assistant to the president, American Federation of Teachers 1980 Died, Baltimore, Maryland Scope and Content of Collection The papers of Alfred Max Loewenthal, an official of electrical workers' and teachers' unions, are concerned with the intersection of labor and communism, and with the intersection of labor and education. They deal with the issue of Communist Party influence in American unions and also with AFL-CIO efforts to counteract communist influence in unions abroad. They also deal with educational activities of unions and with the unionization of educational workers. Loewenthal joined the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers Union (UE) in 1941 as a rank-and-file member on the shop floor. The UE was a major union within the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) and one in which the Communist Party gained substantial influence. Loewenthal, however, was aligned within his Local 447 with an anti-Communist faction. With the onset of the Cold War, the CIO adopted a policy of requiring its constituent unions to purge themselves of pro-Communist officials. When the UE refused to comply, it was expelled in 1949, and the CIO proceeded to charter a rival union, the International Union of Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers (IUE). Loewenthal, by then business agent of Local 447, was instrumental in leading his local out of the UE and into the new IUE. He rose within the IUE to become assistant to President Milton Weihrauch of District 4 (subsequently redesignated District 3), which represented more than 100,000 electrical workers in New York and New Jersey. Factionalism continued, albeit in new form, within the IUE. The 1964 reelection of James B. Carey, president of the IUE since its inception, was found by the National Labor Relations Board to have been tainted by fraud, and the results were overturned. Paul Jennings, installed as IUE president despite lesser irregularities in his own campaign, appointed Loewenthal as his assistant. A rift arose between Jennings and Weihrauch, hitherto allies, which came to a head when misuse of District 3 union funds was uncovered. Weihrauch was ousted, and Loewenthal, though not accused of wrongdoing by anyone, was fired by Jennings. The UE, which had maintained its Register of the Alfred Max 80189 2 Loewenthal papers existence as an independent union outside the AFL-CIO, viewed the disarray within the IUE with considerable glee. This ended Loewenthal's electrical union career, which is documented in the ELECTRICAL WORKERS' UNIONS FILE. While still a Local 447 official, Loewenthal began to specialize in union educational activities. He was founder and director in 1955 of the Union Leadership Academy, sponsored by the IUE in conjunction with the Rutgers University Institute of Management and Labor Relations and the Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations to provide leadership training for union members. He continued as educational director of District 4 and was charged with community relations, human rights, and international contact functions, as well as educational affairs, for District 4 and later for the entire IUE. His labor educational activities are documented in the LABOR EDUCATION FILE, which also covers the one-year appointment he received after leaving the IUE as professor of labor history at Rutgers University, despite his lack of the customary academic credentials. Loewenthal became an official of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) in 1967, initially as public relations director and subsequently as assistant to successive AFT Presidents David Selden and Albert Shanker. In addition to concerns with the relationship between collective bargaining and professionalism as affecting teachers and other educational workers, Loewenthal continued to specialize in human rights and international affairs issues for the AFT. In its international aspects, he was in close touch with the AFL-CIO Department of International Affairs and related bodies, such as the African-American Labor Center, the Asian-American Free Labor Institute, and the American Institute for Free Labor Development. The AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS FILE documents his general work for the union. Contacts with teachers' unions in other countries are covered in the INTERNATIONAL TEACHERS' UNIONS FILE. Loewenthal's early political history is not explicitly documented in the collection. Leaflets of opposing factions in the IUE labeled him a Trotskyist. The LEFT-WING PUBLICATIONS file does include a large volume of Trotskyist literature from the 1930s and 1940s, including internal bulletins, suggesting that he may indeed have been a member or sympathizer of the Socialist Workers Party during his youth. If so, he put that period behind him. He was heavily involved in Democratic Party politics by the early 1960s. Loewenthal was the Democratic candidate for mayor of Verona, New Jersey, in 1963, and in 1964 unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination for Congress from the 12th Congressional District of New Jersey. These campaigns are documented in the ELECTION CAMPAIGN FILE. Loewenthal's mature politics were anti-communist and liberal. He was a strong supporter of Israel and of the American Jewish community, a strong supporter of the black civil rights movement, and an opponent of nuclear weapons testing. In the 1970s he was close to Social Democrats, U.S.A. The SPEECHES AND WRITINGS file includes Loewenthal's own writings from all periods of his life. The SUBJECT FILE consists of collected material, mainly printed matter, arranged topically. The OVERSIZE FILE notably contains oversize publications of the IUE and of Trotskyist organizations. The small AUDIOVISUAL FILE is associated with Loewenthal's IUE period. The Hoover Institution acquired the collection from Eleanor Loewenthal in 1980 following her husband's death. Portions of the collection have suffered from water damage. The abbreviations AFT, IUE and UE are used throughout the register. Subjects and Indexing Terms Communism -- United States Motion pictures Socialism -- United States Labor unions -- United States Electric industry workers -- United States Teachers' unions -- United States Fourth International American Federation of Teachers International Union of Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers SPEECHES AND WRITINGS 1953-1980 Scope and Contents note Speeches and writings by Alfred Loewenthal, arranged chronologically. box 1, folder 1 Orientation address, IUE District 4 Leadership Institute, Newark, New Jersey 1953 April 11 Scope and Contents note Typescript Register of the Alfred Max 80189 3 Loewenthal papers SPEECHES AND WRITINGS 1953-1980 box 1, folder 2 "IUE Instructor Program Starts Second Year," AFL-CIO Education News and Views 1957 April Scope and Contents note Printed copy box 1, folder 3 "Cause of Inflation," letter to the editor, Newark Evening News 1957 October 13 Scope and Contents note Printed copy box 1, folder 4 "Public Libraries and the Experience of the ULA," Library Service to Labor Newsletter 1958 Spring Scope and Contents note Mimeograph box