David P. Berenberg
Encyclopedia
David Paul Berenberg was an American socialist teacher, editor, and writer. He is best remembered as a founder and editor of The American Socialist Quarterly, the theoretical magazine of the Socialist Party of America
(SPA) during the 1930s.
. Berenberg attended public schools in Brooklyn before going on to attend City College of New York
, from which he graduated in 1912.
Upon graduation from City College, Berenberg was employed as a public school teacher, a vocation which he continued from 1913 until 1918, when he resigned his post under fire for his socialist political views. He was not relicensed as a teacher in New York state until 1923.
At the end of the 1920s, Berenberg went into partnership with a friend named Clifford Hall and purchased a college preparatory school
in New York City called The Franklin School, an academy which specialized in helping to place Jewish boys from less-than-elite families into Ivy League
colleges. The pair ran the school together until Hall's death in the late 1940s.
Rand School of Social Science
, which was in charge of conducting correspondence courses
with adults around the country interested in taking courses in the social sciences
. He remained in this position until 1921, working after that date as a teacher on site at the Rand School, conducting classes in English, History, and various topics related to Socialism
. Berenberg remained an employee of the Rand School continuously until his firing early in 1936, an action resulting from Berenberg's factional affiliation in the rough and tumble internal Socialist Party politics of the day.
Berenberg was a candidate for public office on the Socialist Party ticket on a number of different occasions, running for office each year from 1918 through 1924, inclusive. In 1918 and again in 1923 he stood as a candidate for the New York State Assembly
. In 1919 and again in 1921 he ran for New York City Council
. In 1920 Berenberg ran for New York State Senate
, while in 1922 and again in 1924 he ran for U.S. Congress.
A factional war swept the Socialist Party in 1919. The battle pitted an organized Left Wing faction
— headed by Alfred Wagenknecht
, L.E. Katterfeld
, C.E. Ruthenberg, Alexander Stoklitsky, and Nicholas Hourwich — against an equally organized faction of "Party Regulars" led by Executive Secretary Adolph Germer
, James Oneal
, and Julius Gerber
, Berenberg found himself solidly in the latter camp. When well known Left Wing adherent John Reed launched a weekly newspaper called The New York Communist
in April 1919, Berenberg was not long in launching a counter-voice, The New York Socialist. In The New York Socialist Berenberg allowed the Regulars to present their side in the factional debates.
This new rival proved to be too tempting a target for the sophomorish Reed to ignore. On May 17, The New York Socialist appeared as usual at the Rand School. It was not until several thousand issues had been distributed that it was discovered that the document being distributed was an exact replica of Berenberg's publication created by Reed and his partner in crime, Eadmonn MacAlpine. The parody issue prominently featured a speech purported to have been delivered by Louis Waldman
, a prominent leader of the Regular faction on April Fool's Day. In this mock speech, Waldman was portrayed as attacking the Left Wing with the words:
Following a series of suspensions and expulsions by the Socialist Party's governing National Executive Committee which tilted the playing field, the 1919 Emergency National Convention
of the party resulted in a resounding victory for Germer, Oneal, and the Regulars. Outmaneuvered and split over tactics, the Left Wing exited the SPA to form not one, but two organizations — the Communist Party of America and the Communist Labor Party of America. The victory proved costly, however. The Socialist Party lost a large percentage of its membership in the factional war, the number of its dues-payers plummeting from more than 100,000 to barely a tenth of that number, and the organizationation entered into a decade of decline.
The Socialist Party began to rebound in the late 1920s, with an influx of young and energetic members entering the party under the inspiration of the party's Presidential candidate, Norman Thomas
and through the solid organizing efforts of new National Executive Secretary Clarence Senior
.
January 1932 saw the launch of a new publication, the realization of David P. Berenberg's dream — The American Socialist Quarterly. The publication's debut issue noted that, while not an official publication, the ASQ was published by three members of the Socialist Party who believed that:
Such an orientation seems to have been broadly reflective of the views of others in the party and The American Socialist Quarterly, was named the official organ of the Socialist Party by the National Executive Committee in the fall of 1934.
Berenberg was a frequent contributor to The Socialist Call, the weekly newspaper established by the Left Wing opposition to the Old Guard in 1935. He launched a periodic column in this publication late in 1935 entitled "What Does It Mean?" making use of the pseudonym
"David Paul."
Berenberg ran The Franklin School in New York City until Clifford Hall's death at the end of the 1940s. Thereafter, Berenberg retired and moved to Long Island
, where he stayed intellectually engaged by conducting literary book clubs.
His wife, Rose, died in 1970, at which time Berenberg moved to Pennsylvania
to be near a daughter who lived there.
David P. Berenberg's died on March 7, 1974.
Berenberg's papers are housed at Cornell University
in Ithaca, New York
.
Socialist Party of America
The Socialist Party of America was a multi-tendency democratic-socialist political party in the United States, formed in 1901 by a merger between the three-year-old Social Democratic Party of America and disaffected elements of the Socialist Labor Party which had split from the main organization...
(SPA) during the 1930s.
Early years
David P. Berenberg was born March 17, 1890, in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Bernhard Berenberg, a real estate brokerReal estate broker
A real estate broker, real estate agent or realtor is a party who acts as an intermediary between sellers and buyers of real estate/real property and attempts to find sellers who wish to sell and buyers who wish to buy...
. Berenberg attended public schools in Brooklyn before going on to attend City College of New York
City College of New York
The City College of the City University of New York is a senior college of the City University of New York , in New York City. It is also the oldest of the City University's twenty-three institutions of higher learning...
, from which he graduated in 1912.
Upon graduation from City College, Berenberg was employed as a public school teacher, a vocation which he continued from 1913 until 1918, when he resigned his post under fire for his socialist political views. He was not relicensed as a teacher in New York state until 1923.
At the end of the 1920s, Berenberg went into partnership with a friend named Clifford Hall and purchased a college preparatory school
University-preparatory school
A university-preparatory school or college-preparatory school is a secondary school, usually private, designed to prepare students for a college or university education...
in New York City called The Franklin School, an academy which specialized in helping to place Jewish boys from less-than-elite families into Ivy League
Ivy League
The Ivy League is an athletic conference comprising eight private institutions of higher education in the Northeastern United States. The conference name is also commonly used to refer to those eight schools as a group...
colleges. The pair ran the school together until Hall's death in the late 1940s.
Political career
In 1918, Berenberg was named the manager of the correspondence department of the Socialist Party'sSocialist Party of America
The Socialist Party of America was a multi-tendency democratic-socialist political party in the United States, formed in 1901 by a merger between the three-year-old Social Democratic Party of America and disaffected elements of the Socialist Labor Party which had split from the main organization...
Rand School of Social Science
Rand School of Social Science
The Rand School of Social Science was formed in New York City by adherents of the Socialist Party of America in 1906. The school aimed to provide a broad education to workers, imparting a politicizing class-consciousness, and additionally served as a research bureau, a publisher, and the operator...
, which was in charge of conducting correspondence courses
Distance education
Distance education or distance learning is a field of education that focuses on teaching methods and technology with the aim of delivering teaching, often on an individual basis, to students who are not physically present in a traditional educational setting such as a classroom...
with adults around the country interested in taking courses in the social sciences
Social sciences
Social science is the field of study concerned with society. "Social science" is commonly used as an umbrella term to refer to a plurality of fields outside of the natural sciences usually exclusive of the administrative or managerial sciences...
. He remained in this position until 1921, working after that date as a teacher on site at the Rand School, conducting classes in English, History, and various topics related to Socialism
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
. Berenberg remained an employee of the Rand School continuously until his firing early in 1936, an action resulting from Berenberg's factional affiliation in the rough and tumble internal Socialist Party politics of the day.
Berenberg was a candidate for public office on the Socialist Party ticket on a number of different occasions, running for office each year from 1918 through 1924, inclusive. In 1918 and again in 1923 he stood as a candidate for the New York State Assembly
New York State Assembly
The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature. The Assembly is composed of 150 members representing an equal number of districts, with each district having an average population of 128,652...
. In 1919 and again in 1921 he ran for New York City Council
New York City Council
The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of the City of New York. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five boroughs. The Council serves as a check against the mayor in a "strong" mayor-council government model. The council monitors performance of city agencies and...
. In 1920 Berenberg ran for New York State Senate
New York State Senate
The New York State Senate is one of two houses in the New York State Legislature and has members each elected to two-year terms. There are no limits on the number of terms one may serve...
, while in 1922 and again in 1924 he ran for U.S. Congress.
A factional war swept the Socialist Party in 1919. The battle pitted an organized Left Wing faction
Left Wing Section of the Socialist Party
The Left Wing Section of the Socialist Party was an organized faction within the Socialist Party of America in 1919 which served as the core of the dual communist parties which emerged in the fall of that year — the Communist Party of America and the Communist Labor Party of America.-Precusors:A...
— headed by Alfred Wagenknecht
Alfred Wagenknecht
Alfred Wagenknecht was an American Marxist activist and political functionary. He is best remembered for having played a critical role in the establishment of the American Communist Party in 1919 as a leader of the Left Wing Section of the Socialist Party...
, L.E. Katterfeld
L.E. Katterfeld
Ludwig Erwin Alfred "Dutch" Katterfeld , most commonly known as L.E. Katterfeld, was an American socialist politician, a founding member of the Communist Labor Party of America, a Comintern functionary, and a magazine editor.-Early life:L.E...
, C.E. Ruthenberg, Alexander Stoklitsky, and Nicholas Hourwich — against an equally organized faction of "Party Regulars" led by Executive Secretary Adolph Germer
Adolph Germer
Adoph Germer was an American socialist political functionary and union organizer. He is best remembered as National Executive Secretary of the Socialist Party of America from 1916 to 1919. It was during this period that the Left Wing Section of the Socialist Party emerged as an organized faction...
, James Oneal
James Oneal
James "Jim" Oneal , a founding member of the Socialist Party of America , was a prominent socialist journalist, historian, and party activist who played a decisive role in the bitter party splits of 1919-21 and 1934-36.-Early years:...
, and Julius Gerber
Julius Gerber
Julius Gerber was a leading Socialist Party of America party official and politician during the first two decades of the 20th century. Gerber headed the important Socialist Party unit for New York City and its environs from 1911 through 1922...
, Berenberg found himself solidly in the latter camp. When well known Left Wing adherent John Reed launched a weekly newspaper called The New York Communist
New York Communist
The New York Communist was a short-lived weekly newspaper issued by the Left Wing Section of the Socialist Party of Local Greater New York, encompassing the New York City metro area. The paper was edited by the renowned radical journalist and war correspondent John Reed...
in April 1919, Berenberg was not long in launching a counter-voice, The New York Socialist. In The New York Socialist Berenberg allowed the Regulars to present their side in the factional debates.
This new rival proved to be too tempting a target for the sophomorish Reed to ignore. On May 17, The New York Socialist appeared as usual at the Rand School. It was not until several thousand issues had been distributed that it was discovered that the document being distributed was an exact replica of Berenberg's publication created by Reed and his partner in crime, Eadmonn MacAlpine. The parody issue prominently featured a speech purported to have been delivered by Louis Waldman
Louis Waldman
Louis Waldman was a leading figure in the Socialist Party of America from the late 1910s and through the middle 1930s, a founding member of the Social Democratic Federation, and a prominent New York labor lawyer.-Early years:...
, a prominent leader of the Regular faction on April Fool's Day. In this mock speech, Waldman was portrayed as attacking the Left Wing with the words:
"So evident is their intention to disrupt the party that it has been necessary to expel all Left Wing branches and exclude the members from any vote on party affairs. If this is not disrupting the party, what is??
Following a series of suspensions and expulsions by the Socialist Party's governing National Executive Committee which tilted the playing field, the 1919 Emergency National Convention
1919 Emergency National Convention
The 1919 Emergency National Convention of the Socialist Party of America was held in Chicago from August 30 to September 5, 1919. It was a seminal gathering in the history of American radicalism, marked by the bolting of the party's organized left wing to establish the Communist Labor Party of...
of the party resulted in a resounding victory for Germer, Oneal, and the Regulars. Outmaneuvered and split over tactics, the Left Wing exited the SPA to form not one, but two organizations — the Communist Party of America and the Communist Labor Party of America. The victory proved costly, however. The Socialist Party lost a large percentage of its membership in the factional war, the number of its dues-payers plummeting from more than 100,000 to barely a tenth of that number, and the organizationation entered into a decade of decline.
The Socialist Party began to rebound in the late 1920s, with an influx of young and energetic members entering the party under the inspiration of the party's Presidential candidate, Norman Thomas
Norman Thomas
Norman Mattoon Thomas was a leading American socialist, pacifist, and six-time presidential candidate for the Socialist Party of America.-Early years:...
and through the solid organizing efforts of new National Executive Secretary Clarence Senior
Clarence Senior
Clarence Ollson Senior was, as a young man, an American socialist political activist best remembered as the National Executive Secretary of the Socialist Party of America during the 1930s. Originally a protégé of Presidential candidate Norman Thomas, during the inner-party fight of the 1930s,...
.
January 1932 saw the launch of a new publication, the realization of David P. Berenberg's dream — The American Socialist Quarterly. The publication's debut issue noted that, while not an official publication, the ASQ was published by three members of the Socialist Party who believed that:
- the Marxian theories are the philosophic basis of the Socialist Movement;
- that Socialist activity should always be predicated on the class struggle;
- that by democratic methods, and not by methods of cabal and dictatorship will Socialism be attained;
- that work among the unions, that the industrial organization of labor, is of equal importance with political action;
- that political action is necessary...for the establishment of the Socialist Commonwealth;
- that the mere winning of votes and of office is meaningless...unless the Socialist objective is always before the movement;
- that the Socialist Party should not enter into fusions or coalitions with groups that do not accept the Socialist philosophy;
- that Russia is not sacrosanct; that the theories and the acts of the Soviet Republic are as properly subject to critical comment as are the theories and acts of other governments.
Such an orientation seems to have been broadly reflective of the views of others in the party and The American Socialist Quarterly, was named the official organ of the Socialist Party by the National Executive Committee in the fall of 1934.
Berenberg was a frequent contributor to The Socialist Call, the weekly newspaper established by the Left Wing opposition to the Old Guard in 1935. He launched a periodic column in this publication late in 1935 entitled "What Does It Mean?" making use of the pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
"David Paul."
Later years
Berenberg seems to have been discouraged from radical politics by the bitter factional struggle and series of splits which decimated the Socialist Party in 1936 and 1937. His last political pamphlet was published in 1934 and his name was removed from the masthead of The American Socialist Monthly effective with the May 1937 issue. He did contribute a book review to the successor to the ASM, a larger format publication called Socialist Review, as late as the January 1938 issue.Berenberg ran The Franklin School in New York City until Clifford Hall's death at the end of the 1940s. Thereafter, Berenberg retired and moved to Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
, where he stayed intellectually engaged by conducting literary book clubs.
His wife, Rose, died in 1970, at which time Berenberg moved to Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
to be near a daughter who lived there.
David P. Berenberg's died on March 7, 1974.
Berenberg's papers are housed at Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
in Ithaca, New York
Ithaca, New York
The city of Ithaca, is a city in upstate New York and the county seat of Tompkins County, as well as the largest community in the Ithaca-Tompkins County metropolitan area...
.
Books and pamphlets
- The City for the Workers: The Case against "Business Administration" in New York. New York: Rand School of Social Science, 1917.
- Socialism. New York: Rand School of Social Science, 1918.
- The Fundamentals of Socialism: Twelve Lessons. New York: Rand School of Social Science, 1919.
- The Letters of Glaucon and Sarai: And Other Poems. Northampton, MA: N. Fitts, 1924.
- The Kid: A Narrative Poem. New York: Macmillan, 1931.
- A Workers' World. New York: Rand School Press, 1932.
- Socialist Fundamentals. New York: Rand School Press, 1932.
- We the People. New York: Rand School Press, 1934.
- America at the Crossroads. New York: Rand School Press, 1934.
- Chants: And Two Poems by Maples Arce. Boston: J. Wheelwright, 1935.
Articles
- "The Left Wing Manifesto," The New York Socialist, originally serialized in 4 parts, May 4 through June 4, 1919.
- "Why the Foreign Language Federations Were Suspended," The New York Socialist, vol. 1, no. 6 (June 11, 1919), pg. 5.
- "What of the Class Struggle?" American Socialist Quarterly, vol. 1, no. 1 (January 1932), pp. 7–15.
- "A Program for American Socialism," American Socialist Quarterly, vol. 1, no.4 (Autumn 1932), pp. 3–9.
- "Concerning Fusion," American Socialist Quarterly, vol. 2, no. 1 (Winter 1933), pp. 33–38.
- "The Influence of Marx," American Socialist Quarterly, vol. 2, no. 2 (Spring 1933), pp. 3–8.
- "Roosevelt," American Socialist Quarterly, vol. 2, no. 3 (Summer 1933), pp. 45–52.
- "Circuses — and a Little Bread," American Socialist Quarterly, vol. 3, no. 1 (Spring 1934), pp. 12–19.
- "Immediate Demands," American Socialist Quarterly, vol. 3, no. 2 (Summer 1934), pp. 29–36.
- "Socialism and War," American Socialist Quarterly,vol. 3, no. 3 (Autumn 1934), pp. 43–52.
- "The Bankruptcy of American Communism," American Socialist Quarterly,vol. 3, no. 4 (December 1934), pp. 38–50.
- "'Pie in the Sky': A Study of Current Utopian Notions," American Socialist Quarterly,vol. 4, no. 1 (March 1935), pp. 52–64. —on Townsend Plan, "Share the Wealth"Huey LongHuey Pierce Long, Jr. , nicknamed The Kingfish, served as the 40th Governor of Louisiana from 1928–1932 and as a U.S. Senator from 1932 to 1935. A Democrat, he was noted for his radical populist policies. Though a backer of Franklin D...
, Social CreditSocial CreditSocial Credit is an economic philosophy developed by C. H. Douglas , a British engineer, who wrote a book by that name in 1924. Social Credit is described by Douglas as "the policy of a philosophy"; he called his philosophy "practical Christianity"...
, Father Coughlin. - "'Hep! Hep!'" The Socialist Call, vol. 1, no. 9 (May 18, 1935), pg. 7.
- "Anti-Nazi Jokes Flood Germany," The Socialist Call, vol. 1, no.10 (May 25, 1935), pg. 7.
- "Moving Toward Fascism," American Socialist Quarterly, vol. 4, no. 2 (June 1935), pp. 22–30.
- "Coughlin Fires a Dud," The Socialist Call, vol. 1, no.11 (June 1, 1935), pg. 7.
- "Each Stands in His Place," The Socialist Call, vol. 1, no.12 (June 7, 1935), pg. 7.
- "Change the Constitution!" The Socialist Call, vol. 1, no.13 (June 15, 1935), pg. 8.
- "Facts About New York and About the Nation," vol. 1, no.14 (June 22, 1935), pg. 8.
- "A Labor Party," American Socialist Quarterly, vol. 5, no. 3 (May 1936), pp. 2–6.
- "Ferment in Politics," American Socialist Quarterly, vol. 5, no. 6 (August 1936), pp. 2–6.
- "The Moscow Trial," American Socialist Monthly, vol. 5, no. 8 (December 1936), pp. 26–33.
- "Haim Kantorovitch: A Tribute," American Socialist Monthly, vol. 5, no. 8 (December 1936), pp. 39–40.
- "Honeymoon," American Socialist Monthly, vol. 5, no. 9 (February 1937), pp. 43–49.
- "Book Review: Two Pamphlets," American Socialist Monthly, vol. 5, no. 9 (February 1937), pp. 62–64. —on CP's Appeal to Communists; Paul Porter's Which Way for the Socialist Party?
- "Five to Four," American Socialist Monthly, vol. 6, no. 1 (May 1937), pp. 23–25.
- "The Roosevelt Honeymoon is Over," Socialist Review, vol. 6, no. 3 (October–November 1937), pp. 1–3.
Translation
- Julius Deutsch, The Civil War in Austria: A First-hand Account from Eye-witnesses and Participants. Chicago: Socialist Party, National Headquarters, 1934.