Cornell University Library Digital Collections

The Spark, Volume 1, Number 5, January, 1931

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Title:
The Spark, Volume 1, Number 5, January, 1931
Title (Yiddish):
דער פונק, 1טער יאָרגאַנג, נומער 5
Romanized Title (Yiddish):
Der funk
Collection:
International Workers’ Order (IWO) and Jewish People's Fraternal Order (JPFO)
Set:
Conferences, Conventions, Meetings
Culture Front
Education
IWO and JPFO Affiliated Publications and Publishing
Visual
Creator:
International Workers Order (IWO)
Creator (Yiddish):
אינטערנאציאנאלער ארבעטער ארדן
Date:
1931–01
Site:
New York, New York, United States
Address (Creator):
80 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York
Identifier:
5276b50f05_04
Organization:
International Workers Order
Language:
Yiddish
Work Type:
magazines (periodicals)
logos
black-and-white photographs
logos
historical figures
literature (writings)
organization files
articles
political campaigns
communism
political ideologies and attitudes
educating
authors
house organs
publishing
proceedings
meetings
minutes
medicine
Subject:
Political
Communism
Education- Shule, Ordn Schools, Worker's University, other
Culture Front- Publishing, Drama, Poetry
Intelligentsia
Jewish Left
IWO JPFO- Reports, Meetings, and Conferences
Soviet Union
IWO JPFO Journals and Publications
Youth
Pedagogy
Membership
IWO JPFO Organizational History
Description:
The Spark was an official publication of the I.W.O. begun as a monthly in its first year, then bi-monthly thereafter. Contents of the January 1931 issue, from the cover: Lenin. In Memoriam, January 22. Articles by A. Prince, Nachum Weisman. Our School Issue. Articles: On New Paths, by A. Grossfeld. Societal Education and Proletarian Education by Devoyre Tarant. The Yiddish Schools in the Soviet Union by B. Moser. We Want to be Pioneers by Yosl Cutler (Yosel Kotler). Our Children by Moyse Shifris. What the Industrial Union is Doing by Louis Hyman. The Intervention Conspiracy against the Soviet Union, by M. Y. Vachman. The Oratorio, "October" by M. Feder. Effects of Diseased Teeth on Our Health by Dr. Morris Levitt. Also, by Dr. A. Lane, "What the Worker Should Know About Health." Notes from the Secretary. Protocols of the National Executive Committee. Reports from the branches.
Note:
The Spark (Der Funk) was named for Iskra (И́скра), Lenin's erstwhile newspaper
Note:
The Jewish People’s Fraternal Order was the largest ‘national’ section of the International Workers Order (IWO) which focused on cultural awareness and celebration, mutual support especially in health insurance coverage, and anti-fascist activities. The IWO also gave particular emphasis to supporting the rights and interests of African Americans. Documents include language and representations which comprise the historical record and should not be interpreted to mean that Cornell University or its staff endorse or approve of negative representations or stereotypes presented.
Cite As:
International Workers Order (IWO) Records #5276. Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation and Archives, Cornell University Library.
Repository:
Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation and Archives, Martin P. Catherwood Library, Cornell University
Archival Collection:
International Workers Order (IWO) Records, 1915-2002 (KCL05276)
Box:
50
Folder:
5
Rights:
The copyright status and copyright owners of most of the images in the International Workers Order (IWO) Records Collection (Kheel Center #5276) are unknown. This material was digitized from physical holdings by Cornell University Library in 2016, with funding from an Arts and Sciences Grant to Jonathan Boyarin. Documents include language and representations which comprise the historical record and should not be interpreted to mean that Cornell University or its staff endorse or approve of negative representations or stereotypes presented. Cornell is providing access to the materials as a digital aggregate under an assertion of fair use for non-commercial educational use. The written permission of any copyright and other rights holders is required for distribution, reproduction, or other use that extends beyond what is authorized by fair use and other statutory exemptions. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item. Cornell would like to learn more about items in the collection and to hear from individuals or institutions that have any additional information as to rights holders. Please contact the Kheel Center at kheel_center@cornell.edu

About the collection

This bilingual project conserves, digitizes, and curates a portion of Cornell's International Workers Order (IWO) archives and most especially those of its Jewish division, known as the Jewish People's Fraternal Order (JPFO). The IWO was founded in 1930 as an immigrant fraternal order that provided high-quality, low-cost health and burial insurance and other benefits for members. The origins of the IWO / JPFO arise from a decade of splits (1920-1930) concerning the U.S.S.R., the Bolshevik Revolution and Communism that consumed the Jewish Federation of Socialists and the Arbeter Ring (Workmens' Circle) groups associated with Eugene V. Debs' Socialist Party. While the vast majority of the IWO's members--200,000 at its peak right after World War II--did not belong to the Communist Party of the United States of America, the IWO's politics and leadership were largely aligned with those of the Party. The IWO was legally disbanded in 1953 due to the Cold War "Red Scare." This closure followed on a famous and unprecedented court case: its insurance funds and records were seized by New York State's Insurance Department. The presence of a goodly portion of the IWO's archives in the Kheel Center's 5276 Catherwood Library collection at Cornell's Industrial and Labor Relations (ILR) School is a direct result of that seizure.