20:
349:, which had established a Labor Solidarity Fund for the relief work. In response the ILGWU took the lead in founding the Trade Union Red Cross for Spain, with Zimmerman as chairman, Dubinsky as treasurer, and Alex Rose, of the Hat, Cap, and Millinery Workers Union, as secretary. Promoting the humanitarian effort as support to Spanish labor in the fight against fascism, the union leaders raised $ 125,000 by May 1937. The relief organization was later renamed Trade Union Relief for Spain, and remained in existence through early 1939.
360:" of "organizing to prevent enactment of new social legislation" and of acting "to worsen the unemployment situation by cutting down WPA appropriations." Zimmerman called for a national conference bringing together representatives of the AFL, the CIO, and the railway brotherhoods as a means of establishing "united labor action" to defend the Rooseveltian policies.
345:, Zimmerman led a trade union campaign to aid the Spanish workers and civilian populations in Spain who suffered under shortages of food, clothing, and medicine. The initial impulse for this fund-raising work was an appeal that came to Dubinsky and the ILGWU from secretary general Walter Schevenels and president Walter M. Citrine of the
662:, Lovestone and his associates issued a statement declaring that "the Executive Committee of the Communist International desires to destroy the Central Committee and therefore follows the policy of legalizing the past factionalism of the opposition block and inviting its contiuation in the future." Cited in Alexander,
291:
In 1933, Zimmerman was asked by the retiring manager of Local 22 to run for his post. The election was held on April 6, 1933, with
Zimmerman elected manager by a narrow margin, receiving 396 votes out of 825 cast in a three-way race. Zimmerman remained in this position heading Local 22 of the ILGWU
127:
Apparently he didn't want his handwriting to be on it... I asked him questions... when you will grow up, you'll understand. But whether I understood or not, it was bound to leave some impression. There was the revolutionary movement in town ... and the kids knew all about it, and there were
280:
to
Comintern work abroad, decisions which the Lovestone majority group deeply resented. Zimmerman soon found himself expelled from the organization along with Lovestone and most of the others in his circle for their defiance of the Comintern's instructions.
295:
In 1934, Zimmerman was elected as a national vice-president of the ILGWU. His election to such a prestigious position did not necessarily follow that
Zimmerman had left his radical political orientation behind, however. Zimmerman was a bitter critic of the
323:," the official Communists were persuaded to drop their dual union activities and to rejoin the ILGWU. Communist Party loyalists contested the "Lovestoneite" Zimmerman's leadership of Local 22 for a number of years, without success.
276:. The Comintern's was at the time attempting to solve the unceasing and bitter factional war in the American Communist Party by equalizing factional strength in the party leadership and reassigning factional leaders Lovestone and
94:. Sasha's father died when he was 7 and his widowed mother opened up a small grocery store and candy shop to support Sasha, his two siblings, and her mother. Sasha was raised in large measure by his grandmother, an Orthodox Jew.
234:
From 1923 until 1958, except for one interlude, Zimmerman was prominent in the powerful Local 22 of the ILGWU in New York. Zimmerman was stripped of his position due to his
Communist political affiliation in 1925.
239:
944:
352:
By the end of the 1930s, Zimmerman had come over to lending the
Roosevelt Administration and its New Deal policies his full sympathy and support. In January 1939 he sent a telegram to
979:
284:
Zimmerman joined with
Lovestone in establishing the Communist Party (Majority Group), an organization which underwent a series of name changes before eventually emerging as the
858:
Probable effect of the war on the New York women's garment industry and some recommendations: report by a special committee of the
International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union.
254:(RILU). Zimmerman's expulsion from the Communist Party in 1929 led to his expulsion from the NTWIU in 1930, paving his way for a return to ILGWU Local 22 shortly thereafter.
994:
109:
399:, Communist unionists were receiving five times the amount of newsprint allotted to the Socialists, thus making them far better able to advance their views.
852:
Report on the medical administration of sick benefits to
Dressmakers' Union Local 22 of the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union for the year 1935.
984:
1004:
659:
433:
After his retirement from union work in 1972, Zimmerman continued to live in New York City. He died on June 3, 1983, at the age of 86. Zimmerman's son
206:
193:
was paid. After less than a year, Zimmerman again found himself unemployed, and he returned to work in the garment industry, working in a factory in
379:
to make a survey of the political situation on the ground there. Zimmerman made his report on his trip in April 1946, detailing his perspective on
879:
Kheel Center for Labor-Management
Documentation and Archives, Cornell University Library. Collection Number: 5780/014. Retrieved October 26, 2009.
811:
166:, a position which allowed him to continue his studies in the evening. Pay for the immigrant workers was low and conditions poor in the New York
163:
846:
Our Union at work; Summary report of the executive board of
Dressmakers Union, Local 22, I.L.G.W.U., for the year April 1933 to April 1934
272:
on party business in association with RILU in May 1929 at the time of the decisive showdown between Lovestone and his associates with the
949:
45:
989:
969:
402:
In 1958, Zimmerman became the head of the Dress Waistmakers Union. He also served as chairman of the Civil Rights Committee of the
346:
829:
864:
In freedom 's cause. Report Antidiscrimination department Jewish Labor Committee 1957 Biennial Convention, Atlantic City, N.J.
939:
331:
837:
285:
607:
Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation and Archives, Cornell University Library. Retrieved October 26, 2009.
251:
877:"Guide to the International Ladies Garment Workers Union. Charles S. Zimmerman papers, 1919-1958 (bulk 1920-1945)."
135:
Sasha emigrated to the United States in 1913 at the age of 16, where he joined a sister in living with an uncle in
105:, which already had its quota of Jewish students, only after a battle made with the assistance of a local doctor.
831:
American labor faces the future; the problems of trade unionism in the light of the San Francisco general strike.
108:
At the age of 12, Sasha began transcribing communiques to help a young man he knew who was connected with the
338:(AFL), a decision made in the face of particularly bitter opposition from official Communists in the union.
999:
766:
Zimmerman's papers related to trade union relief efforts during the Spanish Civil War are contained in the
353:
335:
181:
In 1914, Zimmerman found himself laid off his job. He was taken to work by his uncle, a factory foreman in
77:
parents as Alexander Ubsushone in 1896. Alexander, known to family and friends as "Sasha," was born in the
238:
During the period in which he was excluded from the ILGWU, Zimmerman was influential in establishing the
964:
959:
423:
220:
213:
53:
974:
154:
in a store near his apartment, but the hours of employment made it impossible for the boy to attend
363:
Along with his political allies David Dubinsky and Jay Lovestone, Zimmerman emerged as a prominent
334:
in 1935 and backing Dubinsky's decision to withdraw from the CIO in 1938 in order to return to the
288:
in the late 1930s. He was among the initial members of the governing National Council of the CPMG.
247:
139:. It has been alleged that Sasha had his name changed to Charles Sasha Zimmerman by an official at
605:"Guide to the International Ladies Garment Workers Union. Charles S. Zimmerman papers, 1919-1958."
418:
in 1966, which blinded him but did not remove him from active political activity. In 1972, he and
954:
273:
262:
876:
604:
19:
901:
767:
647:
The Right Opposition: The Lovestoneites and the International Communist Opposition of the 1930s
376:
312:
idea," and he was outspoken in holding the view, saying as much to a convention of the ILGWU.
434:
427:
395:. Zimmerman was particularly concerned that in the zone of divided Germany controlled by the
301:
297:
131:
All these things had an effect... At the age of eleven and twelve you were no longer a child.
143:
upon arrival and he was thereafter known by this new moniker but this is impossible because
934:
929:
223:(CPA) at the time of its formation in 1919. In the CPA, Zimmerman was a close associate of
144:
57:
505:
Interview, Charles Zimmerman, Howe collection, YIVO, 1968, pp. 2-3. Cited in Geral Sorin,
8:
277:
101:
for three years and had two years of Russian schooling, gaining admission to the Russian
445:
438:
228:
102:
342:
182:
326:
As a national leader of the ILGWU, Zimmerman proved a loyal supporter of union head
155:
633:
449:
368:
227:, who emerged as Executive Secretary of the organization after the sudden death of
159:
356:, president of the American Federation of Labor, accusing "conservative forces in
216:(SPA). He remained active in the radical labor movement for the rest of his life.
257:
Zimmerman was three times a candidate for elective political office, running in
911:
364:
327:
91:
923:
781:"Zimmerman Calls for United Labor Front: New Congress Threatens Past Gains,"
711:
419:
357:
320:
224:
175:
136:
49:
41:
755:
The Master of Seventh Avenue: David Dubinsky and the American Labor Movement
716:
The Master of Seventh Avenue: David Dubinsky and the American Labor Movement
396:
372:
316:
258:
151:
140:
98:
893:
403:
380:
171:
37:
666:, pg. 23. Specific note that Zimmerman was among those expelled appears
265:
in 1925, 1926, and 1928 on the ticket of the Workers (Communist) Party.
839:
The labor movement and the NRA: the standpoint of progressive unionism.
243:
194:
476:
The Prophetic Minority: American Jewish Immigrant Radicals, 1880-1920.
658:
Instead of accepting the decisions of the American Commission of the
375:. Early in 1946, Zimmerman was dispatched to Europe on behalf of the
190:
186:
167:
44:. Zimmerman had a career spanning five decades as an official of the
30:
305:
33:
209:(ILGWU), and was elected chairman of his shop within a few weeks.
392:
309:
78:
812:
Charles S. Zimmerman Dies at 86; Longtime Garment Union Leader,"
415:
388:
384:
269:
113:
82:
74:
772:, RG 1477, YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, New York, N.Y.
87:
945:
Socialist Party of America politicians from New York (state)
117:
170:. Within a year, the young Zimmerman had helped to form a
292:
for the next 40 years, retiring only in the early 1970s.
158:. Charles quit and took a job in the burgeoning New York
319:" at an end in favor of the coalition-building of the "
980:
Emigrants from the Russian Empire to the United States
854:
New York, Dressmakers union local 22, I.L.G.W.U. 1936
848:
New York, Dressmakers union local 22, I.L.G.W.U. 1934
842:
New York, Dressmakers union local 22, I.L.G.W.U. 1934
834:
New York, Dressmakers union local 22, I.L.G.W.U. 1934
718:. New York: New York University Press, 2005; pg. 100.
636:, PoliticalGraveyard.com. Retrieved October 26, 2009.
478:
Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1985; pg. 149.
437:
is the famed football writer for the weekly magazine
189:, a job which netted him just $ 5.80 per week after
145:
Ellis Island officials never changed people's names
995:International Ladies Garment Workers Union leaders
660:Executive Committee of the Communist International
304:in the period, regarding it in particular and the
330:, supporting the affiliation of the union to the
921:
424:Socialist Party -Democratic Socialist Federation
694:
692:
649:. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1981; pg. 22.
615:
613:
315:In the middle 1930s, with the ultra-radical "
793:
791:
207:International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union
985:American people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent
689:
610:
785:, vol. 8, no. 2 (January 14, 1939), pg. 1.
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560:
558:
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46:International Ladies Garment Workers Union
1005:Members of the Socialist Party of America
788:
705:
682:, November 1, 1929. Cited in Alexander,
426:, and supports its changing its name to
347:International Federation of Trade Unions
48:. During the early 1970s, Zimmerman and
18:
600:
598:
596:
573:
551:
481:
461:
371:" in the years after the conclusion of
922:
240:Needle Trades Workers Industrial Union
866:New York: Jewish Labor Committee 1957
860:New York: Jewish Labor Committee 1942
593:
332:Congress of Industrial Organizations
409:
286:Independent Labor League of America
246:sponsored by the Communist Party's
200:
13:
950:Members of the Communist Party USA
150:Zimmerman first went to work as a
14:
1016:
870:
444:Zimmerman's papers are housed at
252:Red International of Labor Unions
178:of his fellows for better wages.
73:Charles S. Zimmerman was born of
817:June 5, 1983, section 1, pg. 32.
422:were elected co-chairman of the
414:Charles S. Zimmerman suffered a
40:leader, who was an associate of
990:Members of Social Democrats USA
970:Jewish American trade unionists
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250:(TUUL) and affiliated with the
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212:In 1917, Zimmerman joined the
205:In 1916, Zimmerman joined the
68:
52:were national Co-Chairmen the
1:
940:Activists from New York City
799:The Master of Seventh Avenue
769:Spanish Civil War Collection
455:
336:American Federation of Labor
63:
29:(1896–1983) was an American
27:Charles S. "Sasha" Zimmerman
7:
632:Lawrence Kestenbaum (ed.),
16:American socialist activist
10:
1021:
221:Communist Party of America
214:Socialist Party of America
123:Zimmerman later recalled:
54:Socialist Party of America
908:
898:
890:
885:
174:and had led a three-week
341:During the years of the
248:Trade Union Unity League
588:The Prophetic Majority,
568:The Prophetic Minority,
546:The Prophetic Minority,
533:The Prophetic Minority,
520:The Prophetic Minority,
507:The Prophetic Minority,
494:The Prophetic Minority,
274:Communist International
263:New York State Assembly
902:Jewish Labor Committee
377:Jewish Labor Committee
185:, where he was taught
133:
110:revolutionary movement
23:
729:The Right Opposition,
700:The Right Opposition,
680:The Revolutionary Age
645:Robert J. Alexander,
428:Social Democrats, USA
302:Franklin D. Roosevelt
298:National Recovery Act
219:Zimmerman joined the
125:
22:
886:Trade union offices
810:Joseph B. Treaster,
742:The Right Opposition
684:The Right Opposition
664:The Right Opposition
634:"Charles Zimmerman,"
621:The Right Opposition
58:Social Democrats USA
1000:American socialists
278:Alexander Bittelman
90:, then part of the
446:Cornell University
439:Sports Illustrated
24:
965:American Marxists
960:Jewish socialists
918:
917:
909:Succeeded by
900:President of the
343:Spanish Civil War
308:in general as "a
268:Zimmerman was in
1012:
975:Right Opposition
906:1969–1974
891:Preceded by
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450:Ithaca, New York
410:Death and legacy
369:Cold War liberal
201:Political career
160:garment industry
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97:Sasha attended
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824:Publications
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397:Soviet Union
373:World War II
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259:Bronx County
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156:night school
152:retail clerk
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141:Ellis Island
134:
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99:Talmud Torah
96:
81:
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26:
25:
935:1983 deaths
930:1896 births
894:Adolph Held
783:Workers Age
740:Alexander,
727:Alexander,
698:Alexander,
619:Alexander,
381:Scandinavia
172:union local
69:Early years
38:trade union
924:Categories
801:, pg. 224.
244:dual union
195:New Jersey
168:sweatshops
164:knee-pants
757:. p. 137.
686:, pg. 35.
670:, pg. 28.
623:, pg. 45.
456:Footnotes
231:in 1927.
187:carpentry
128:meetings.
103:gymnasium
79:Ukrainian
64:Biography
31:socialist
797:Parmet,
753:Parmet,
590:pg. 155.
570:pg. 154.
548:pg. 153.
535:pg. 152.
496:pg. 151.
358:Congress
306:New Deal
191:car fare
56:and the
34:activist
731:pg. 47.
702:pg. 46.
586:Sorin,
566:Sorin,
544:Sorin,
531:Sorin,
518:Sorin,
509:p. 151.
492:Sorin,
404:AFL–CIO
393:Germany
310:Fascist
183:Astoria
162:making
416:stroke
391:, and
389:Poland
385:France
270:Moscow
176:strike
114:Odessa
83:shtetl
75:Jewish
668:Ibid.
88:Talne
435:Paul
261:for
242:, a
118:Kiev
116:and
36:and
448:in
112:in
86:of
926::
790:^
714:,
691:^
612:^
595:^
575:^
553:^
483:^
463:^
452:.
441:.
430:.
406:.
387:,
383:,
197:.
147:.
120:.
60:.
367:"
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