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Jewish NYC: Work and Activism

This research guide highlights Jewish history in New York through the rich collection of The New York Public Library.

Labor Activism

Work and Activism

This section includes select resources about Jewish participation in New York's workforce, economic life, and activism. Jewish New Yorkers have been involved in the city's economic life in a myriad of ways, from founding some of the city's historical department stores (Gimbels, Saks Fifth Avenue, and B. Altman) and giving a special character to the city's famous Diamond District, to organizing labor unions and civil rights organizations.

The Library's collection includes many primary and secondary sources about Jewish New Yorkers' work and activism, including Jewish newspapers and organizational publications [link]. The Library holds materials about labor activists in the garment industry and other industries in the city. Unions with historically strong or leading Jewish participation include:

The library also holds materials about Jewish New Yorkers' relationship to economic and social issues, as well as biographies and memoirs of individual activists in fields from anarchism to Soviet Jewry to LGBTQ rights.

 

Suggested Subject Headings:

 

Keywords:

Jews   Labor unions   Civil rights   Department stores    Economic conditions   Garment industry   Employment   Radicals

 

American Jewish Committee Oral History Collection Series:

 

Research Guides:

Industries

Further Research