Working for Peace and Justice: Memoirs of an Activist Intellectual

285 Pages·2012·2.142 MB·English

by  Wittner, Lawrence S.;State University of New York at Albany

Working for Peace and Justice

Working for Peace and Justice
Memoirs of an Activist Intellectual
Lawrence S. Wittner
Legacies of War • G. Kurt Piehler, Series Editor
The University of Tennessee Press • Knoxville
The Legacies of War series presents a variety of works—from scholarly monographs to mem-
oirs—that examine the impact of war on society, both in the United States and globally. The wide
scope of the series might include war’s effects on civilian populations, its lingering consequences
for veterans, and the role of individual nations and the international community in confronting
genocide and other injustices born of war.
a
Copyright © 2012 by The University of Tennessee Press / Knoxville.
All Rights Reserved. Manufactured in the United States of America.
First Edition.
Unless otherwise credited, all photographs are from the author’s collection.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Wittner, Lawrence S.
Working for peace and justice: memoirs of an activist intellectual / Lawrence S. Wittner. — 1st ed.
p. cm. — (Legacies of war)
eISBN-13: 978-1-57233-895-1
eISBN-10: 1-57233-895-4
1. Wittner, Lawrence S.
2. Intellectuals—United States—Biography.
3. Political activists—United States—Biography.
4. Pacifists—United States—Biography.
5. Scholars—United States—Biography.
6. Historians—United States—Biography.
7. Student movements—United States—History—20th century.
8. Peace movements—History—20th century.
9. Social justice—History—20th century.
10. State University of New York at Albany—Faculty—Biography.
I. Title.
CT275.W593A3 2012
305.5'52092—dc23
[B]
2011041685
To the many people who have made my heart sing

Contents
Foreword xi
G. Kurt Piehler, Series Editor
Preface xv
1. Family Background 1
2. Brooklyn Boyhood, 1941–1958 13
3. College Days, 1958–1962 39
4. Graduate School, 1962–1967 69
5. A Young Faculty Member, 1967–1972 89
6. Overseas Exile, 1972–1974 113
7. Grappling with Issues of Work and Love, 1974–1980 127
8. An Activist Academic, 1981–1989 161
9. A National and International Figure, 1990–2001 191
10. Growing Old, but Not Gracefully, 2001–2011 221
11. In Retrospect 249
Other Books by Lawrence Wittner 253
Index 255

Illustrations
Following Page 147
Joseph Tzvi Barnatsky and Dvorah Barnatsky in Russian Poland, Late
Nineteenth Century
Abraham Barnett and Rose Barnett, circa 1911
Leah and Joseph Wittner with Their Son, Jacob (“Jack”) Wittner, circa 1911
Rose Barnett, circa 1928
Jack Wittner, February 1930
With Rose Wittner, August 1941
In the Playpen, June 1942
As a Young Boy, circa 1945
Alpha Phi Omega Visits McSorley’s Old Ale House, Manhattan, Fall 1958
With Mike Weinberg on Brooklyn Streets, June 1962
Hampton Institute Convocation Ceremonies, 1967
Speaking with U.S. Sailors at Antiwar Coffeehouse in Japan, 1974
Marjie Wittner, Julia Wittner, and Jack Wittner, Late 1970s
DSOC Luncheon Talk by Michael Harrington
In Police Van Following Arrest during a Free South Africa Sit-In, 1985
Support Demonstration for ACTWU, Lorbrook Factory, Hudson, New York,
1987
With Ben Barker-Benfield on Cape Cod, 1988
At Peace Researcher Meeting in Moscow, 1990
Dorothy Tristman, Albany, New York, Late 1990s
Peace Historians at Dinner during Hague Appeal for Peace Conference, 1999
Interviewed by a TV Reporter amid Pro-Union Uprising, 2000
Solidarity Committee at Labor Day Picnic, 2000
Leading Singing of “Solidarity Forever” at Statewide UUP Convention, 2001
Solidarity Singers at Caffè Lena, 2003
Speaking at Georgian Court University, 2004
Leading Annual Nuclear Disarmament March through Streets of Hiroshima,
2004
Receiving Upper Hudson Peace Action’s “Peacemaker” Award, 2007