Arthur Naftalin (June 28, 1917 – May 16, 2005) was an American

political scientist Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

and politician. A member of the

Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party Minnesota ( ) is a state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the south, and No ...

(DFL), he served as

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

from July 3, 1961, to July 6, 1969. He was the first

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

mayor of Minneapolis.

Early life

Naftalin was born in Fargo,

North Dakota North Dakota ( ) is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota people, Dakota and Sioux peoples. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minneso ...

, one of four children of Sandel and Tillie Naftalin. He was married to Frances Healy Naftalin; among their children is

Mark Naftalin Mark Naftalin (born August 2, 1944) is an American blues keyboardist and record producer. He appears on the first five albums by Paul Butterfield Blues Band in the mid 1960s as a band member, and as such was inducted into the Rock and Roll Ha ...

, a musician who was inducted into the

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), also simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and the ...

in 2015 as a member of the

Paul Butterfield Blues Band The Paul Butterfield Blues Band was an American blues and blues-rock band from Chicago. Formed in the summer of 1963, the group originally featured eponymous vocalist and harmonicist Paul Butterfield, guitarist Elvin Bishop, bassist Jerome ...

. Their other notable children are David Michael Bismarck and Gail Marie Naftalin.

University of Minnesota and Hubert Humphrey

Naftalin came to

to attend the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...

, from which he received a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree in 1939 and a

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

in 1948. His dissertation was a history of the Farmer-Labor Party of Minnesota. During this time, he became acquainted with

Hubert Humphrey Hubert Horatio Humphrey Jr. (May 27, 1911 – January 13, 1978) was an American politician who served from 1965 to 1969 as the 38th vice president of the United States. He twice served in the United States Senate, representing Minnesota from 19 ...

and helped Humphrey lead the merger of

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

's Democratic and Farmer-Labor parties into the DFL in 1944. In 1945, Humphrey was elected mayor and Naftalin was appointed to work in his office. Naftalin later became a professor in the department of political science at the

. He served as commissioner of administration under

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Orville L. Freeman.

Mayor

In 1961, he won the first of his four two-year terms as mayor, defeating incumbent Republican Mayor P. Kenneth Peterson by a margin of 52.04% to 47.96%. He attended the 1963

March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom (commonly known as the March on Washington or the Great March on Washington) was held in Washington, D.C., on August 28, 1963. The purpose of the march was to advocate for the civil and economic righ ...

and was present at

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister, civil and political rights, civil rights activist and political philosopher who was a leader of the civil rights move ...

's "

I Have a Dream "I Have a Dream" is a Public speaking, public speech that was delivered by American civil rights activist and Baptist minister Martin Luther King Jr. during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963. In the speech, Kin ...

" speech. He ran for the DFL endorsement for

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

in 1966. In 1967, he called in the

National Guard National guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards. ...

to quell the 1967 Plymouth Avenue civil unrest. Naftalin declined to seek reelection in 1969, becoming the only mayor of Minneapolis in the period 1913–1979 who never resigned or lost an

election An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative d ...

. Naftalin was succeeded by Charlie Stenvig, a police officer with no previous political experience who promised a "law and order" approach to any future civil unrest.

Life after leaving office

After leaving office, Naftalin became a professor in the department of public affairs at the

(now the Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs). In 1971, he joined the board of directors of the

Citizens League The Citizens League is a nonpartisan think tank based in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area of Minnesota. It was established in 1952 as a good government advocacy and policy group. The first Citizens League board of directors was elected ...

, and served as president of the board in 1975–1976. From 1976 to 1987, he produced and hosted 500 installments of ''Minnesota Issues'', a weekly public-affairs program on local

public television Public broadcasting (or public service broadcasting) is radio, television, and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service with a commitment to avoiding political and commercial influence. Public broadcasters receive f ...

station KTCA. In 1980 he produced, wrote, and narrated a series of one-hour television documentaries about former

governors. He retired in 1987. On the morning of May 16, 2005, Naftalin struck his head in a fall, went into a

coma A coma is a deep state of prolonged unconsciousness in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to Nociception, respond normally to Pain, painful stimuli, light, or sound, lacks a normal Circadian rhythm, sleep-wake cycle and does not initiate ...

, and died later in the day at

Abbott Northwestern Hospital Abbott Northwestern Hospital is a 686-staffed bed teaching and specialty hospital based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is a part of the Allina Health network of hospitals and clinics. History Abbott Northwestern Hospital was founded in 1882 as N ...

. He donated his body to the

for research.

References

*Rochelle Olson (May 17, 2005)
Former Minneapolis Mayor Arthur Naftalin dies.
''

Star Tribune ''The Minnesota Star Tribune'', formerly the ''Minneapolis Star Tribune'', is an American daily newspaper based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. As of 2023, it is Minnesota's largest newspaper and the List of newspapers in the United States, seventh- ...

''. *David Hawley (May 18, 2005)
Arthur Naftalin, 87, former mayor.
''

St. Paul Pioneer Press The ''St. Paul Pioneer Press'' is a newspaper based in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. It serves the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area. Circulation is heaviest in the east metro, including Ramsey, Dakota, and Washington countie ...

''. * Citizens League News, 1952–200
CitizensLeague.net
{{DEFAULTSORT:Naftalin, Arthur 1917 births 2005 deaths 20th-century mayors of places in Minnesota University of Minnesota alumni Accidental deaths from falls Jewish American mayors Mayors of Minneapolis Minnesota Democrats Politicians from Fargo, North Dakota Accidental deaths in Minnesota Jewish American people in Minnesota politics 20th-century American Jews 21st-century American Jews 20th-century American political scientists