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The Bund was the first modern Jewish political party in Eastern Europe, and, arguably, the strongest Jewish party in Poland on the eve of World War II. Examine the Bund’s history, the development of its program, and the reasons which underlie both its rise and decline.

Jack Jacobs talks about his book.

In the decades following Israel’s establishment, subtle variations appeared in the attitudes of key Jewish members of the Frankfurt School—figures like Max Horkheimer, Leo Lowenthal, Erich Fromm, and Herbert Marcuse—toward the Jewish state.

In the 19th and 20th centuries, the world of East European Jewry was transformed by sweeping changes. Political thought has often been sparked by such change – and this was certainly true on the Jewish street. This course will focus on the ideas of Dubnow, Zhitlowsky, Pinsker, Ahad Ha’am, Syrkin, Borochov, Scherer, and Jabotinsky.

In the last decades of the 19th century, and the first decades of the 20th, Jews held highly visible positions in a number of different left-wing movements. Can this phenomenon be explained by referring to Jewish religious tenets? Can it be explained by the marginality of the Jewish population?

The program will consist of formal presentations on Bund history, performances of songs and poetry (in English and Yiddish) and commentary by contemporary activists.

Brendan McGeever presents his new book, Antisemitism and the Russian Revolution. The evening includes an introduction by Jack Jacobs, and a panel discussion with McGeever, Jacobs, and YIVO’s Jonathan Brent. 

YIVO celebrates the 120th anniversary of the founding of the Jewish Labor Bund, the socialist movement which has figured so prominently in the history of East European and World Jewry.