Mendy Samstein
Encyclopedia
Jehudah Menachem Mendel "Mendy" Samstein (July 25, 1938 - January 24, 2007) was an American
civil rights
activist.
Born in Manhattan
, he majored in European history at Brandeis
, and later earned a master's degree in the same subject from Cornell
. He was studying for a Ph.D. in history at the University of Chicago
when he quit to join the civil rights movement in the South. He became a full-time organizer for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee
(or SNCC, pronounced "snick"). Stokely Carmichael
, later chairman of SNCC, called Samstein "one in a million".
Later on, Samstein also organized protests against the Vietnam War
. He had a variety of jobs, including working as a teacher, as a psychoanalyst, and running a summer camp. In 2000, he and other civil rights veterans protested the handling of the presidential vote in Florida
.
Samstein was married to Nancy Cooper, a fellow civil rights activist. He died from carcinoid
cancer at his home in New Lisbon, New York
, aged 68.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
activist.
Born in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, he majored in European history at Brandeis
Brandeis University
Brandeis University is an American private research university with a liberal arts focus. It is located in the southwestern corner of Waltham, Massachusetts, nine miles west of Boston. The University has an enrollment of approximately 3,200 undergraduate and 2,100 graduate students. In 2011, it...
, and later earned a master's degree in the same subject from Cornell
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...
. He was studying for a Ph.D. in history at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
when he quit to join the civil rights movement in the South. He became a full-time organizer for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee
Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee
The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee ' was one of the principal organizations of the American Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s. It emerged from a series of student meetings led by Ella Baker held at Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina in April 1960...
(or SNCC, pronounced "snick"). Stokely Carmichael
Stokely Carmichael
Kwame Ture , also known as Stokely Carmichael, was a Trinidadian-American black activist active in the 1960s American Civil Rights Movement. He rose to prominence first as a leader of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and later as the "Honorary Prime Minister" of the Black Panther Party...
, later chairman of SNCC, called Samstein "one in a million".
Later on, Samstein also organized protests against the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. He had a variety of jobs, including working as a teacher, as a psychoanalyst, and running a summer camp. In 2000, he and other civil rights veterans protested the handling of the presidential vote in Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
.
Samstein was married to Nancy Cooper, a fellow civil rights activist. He died from carcinoid
Carcinoid
Carcinoid is a slow-growing type of neuroendocrine tumor, originating in the cells of the neuroendocrine system.In 2000, the World Health Organization redefined "carcinoid", but this new definition has not been accepted by all practitioners. This has led to some complexity in distinguishing...
cancer at his home in New Lisbon, New York
New Lisbon, New York
New Lisbon is a town in Otsego County, New York, United States. The population was 1,116 at the 2000 census.The Town of New Lisbon is in the west-central part of the county. It is north of the City of Oneonta.- History :...
, aged 68.