Boris Yelensky (February 17, 1889 – June 18, 1974) was a Russian

anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and Political movement, movement that seeks to abolish all institutions that perpetuate authority, coercion, or Social hierarchy, hierarchy, primarily targeting the state (polity), state and capitalism. A ...

propagandist Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded l ...

from the early 20th century. Born in Russia in 1889, he participated in the

1905 Revolution The Russian Revolution of 1905, also known as the First Russian Revolution, was a revolution in the Russian Empire which began on 22 January 1905 and led to the establishment of a constitutional monarchy under the Russian Constitution of 1906, t ...

, later migrating to the US, returning to take part in the

1917 Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of political and social change in Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and adopt a socialist form of government following two successive revolutions and a civil war. It ...

and migrating once more to the US. Once there, he became a prominent figure in the anarchism movement, particularly in the Anarchist Red Cross in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

.Zimmer, Kenyon. "Premature Anti-Communists?: American Anarchism, the Russian Revolution, and Left-Wing Libertarian Anti-Communism, 1917-1939."Labor 6.2 (2009): 45-71.Walter, Nicolas. "Anarchism in Print: yesterday and today." Government and Opposition 5.4 (1970): 523-540.

Life

Early years

Boris Yelensky was born in

Krasnodar Krasnodar, formerly Yekaterinodar (until 1920), is the largest city and the administrative centre of Krasnodar Krai, Russia. The city stands on the Kuban River in southern Russia, with a population of 1,154,885 residents, and up to 1.263 millio ...

, Russia in 1889, near Novorosisk on the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal sea, marginal Mediterranean sea (oceanography), mediterranean sea lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bound ...

in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

. Born to a capmaker father, he attended a Russian primary school, and worked for his father as a young boy. His family were

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 ...

, but did not practice

Judaism Judaism () is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, Monotheism, monotheistic, ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jews, Jewish people. Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of o ...

, and Boris did not learn to speak or write

Yiddish Yiddish, historically Judeo-German, is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated in 9th-century Central Europe, and provided the nascent Ashkenazi community with a vernacular based on High German fused with ...

as a child.

Activism

He began reading socialist literature at the age of 12, joining the

Union of Socialists-Revolutionaries Maximalists Union of Socialists-Revolutionaries-Maximalists () was a political party in the Russian Empire, a radical wing expelled from the Socialist-Revolutionary Party in 1906. The Union united agrarian terrorists, the 'Moscow Opposition' and other radica ...

and participating in the 1905 botched revolution. Due to repressive pressure (allegedly by the

Ohrana Ohrana (, "Protection"; ) were armed collaborationist detachments organized by the former Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (IMRO) structures, composed of Bulgarians in Nazi-occupied Greek Macedonia during World War II and led by ...

), he emigrated to

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

in 1907, joining the

Union of Russian Workers The Union of Russian Workers in the United States and Canada, commonly known as the "Union of Russian Workers" (Союз Русских Рабочих, ''Soiuz Russkikh Rabochikh)'' was an anarcho-syndicalist union of Russian American, Russian em ...

and the Radical Library (a branch of the

Workmen's Circle The Workers Circle or Der Arbeter Ring (), formerly The Workmen's Circle, is an American Jews, Jewish nonprofit organization that promotes social and economic justice, Jewish community and education, including Yiddish studies, and Ashkenazi Jews, ...

) shortly thereafter. With Morris Beresin they were two of the founders of the Black Red Cross. In Philadelphia, he met and married Bessie, who became his lifelong partner. He also learnt English and Yiddish once in America. Travelling to Chicago in 1913, he became the Chicago chapter's secretary of the Anarchist Red Cross until 1917; in May that year he travelled to Russia via Japan-Siberia with other members of ''

Golos Truda ''Golos Truda'' () was a Russian-language anarchist newspaper. Founded by working-class Russian expatriates in New York City in 1911, ''Golos Truda'' shifted to Petrograd during the Russian Revolution in 1917, when its editors took advantage of ...

''. Hundreds of anarchists left via that same route to participate in the revolution. He was present during the October Revolution, and active in the factory committee movement in Novorossijsk. During his stay in Russia, he was imprisoned twice. He left Russia with his family in 1922, being banned from the

USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

in 1923, and deported as a US citizen; he remained secretary of the Russian Political Relief Committee in 1924–1925. Settling in Chicago once more, he led the Chicago Aid Fund for eleven years, from 1925 on, during which time he formed a section of the Relief Fund of the

International Workingmen's Association The International Workingmen's Association (IWA; 1864–1876), often called the First International, was a political international which aimed at uniting a variety of different left-wing socialist, social democratic, communist, and anarchist g ...

for Anarchists and Anarcho-Syndicalists Imprisoned and Exiled in Russia. He participated in the new

Free Society ''Free Society'' (1895–1897 as ''The Firebrand''; 1897–1904 as ''Free Society'') was a major anarchist newspaper in the United States at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth centuries."''Free Society'' was the principal En ...

, running it until 1957. He was also active in the

Alexander Berkman Alexander Berkman (November 21, 1870June 28, 1936) was a Russian-American anarchist and author. He was a leading member of the anarchist movement in the early 20th century, famous for both his political activism and his writing. Be ...

Aid Fund from 1936 to 1957, serving as its secretary general. Yelensky also ran several committees initiated by the former organizations, such as the Maximoff Memorial Publication Committee. In 1937, he organized the 50th anniversary memorial of the

Haymarket affair The Haymarket affair, also known as the Haymarket massacre, the Haymarket riot, the Haymarket Square riot, or the Haymarket Incident, was the aftermath of a bombing that took place at a labor demonstration on May 4, 1886 at Haymarket Square (C ...

. When the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

broke out, he raised funds for the CNT-FAI through Maximiliano Olay's intermediation.Boscà, Martí, José Vicente, and Antonio Rey González. "El viaje de Félix Martí Ibáñez a Norteamérica en busca de apoyos internacionales. Agosto–diciembre, 1938."Goldman, Emma. Vision on Fire: Emma Goldman on the Spanish Revolution. AK Press, 2006. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and immediately afterwards, he offered assistance to victims of the war through his European contacts, sending parcels through

CARE Care may refer to: Organizations and projects * CARE (New Zealand), Citizens Association for Racial Equality, a former New Zealand organisation * CARE (England) West Midlands, Central Accident Resuscitation Emergency team, a team of doctors & ...

. Yelensky wrote proficiently, and the

International Institute of Social History International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

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now houses his complete archive, including articles he wrote under his

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...

Berl Kavkazer.

Death

In 1959, he moved with his wife to

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

, becoming secretary of the Simon Farber Memorial Fund. He died of cancer in June, 1974. He is interred in the

German Waldheim Cemetery Forest Home Cemetery is a cemetery located at 863 S. Des Plaines Ave, Forest Park, Illinois, United States. Located adjacent to the Eisenhower Expressway, it straddles the Des Plaines River in Cook County, just west of Chicago. The cemetery ...

, close to where Harry Kelly and other prominent anarchists are buried.

Publications

Boris Yalensky published a series of texts during his lifetime, including in publications ''Golos Truzhenika'' (Chicago, 1918–1927), '' Delo Truda Probuzhdenie'' (New York, 1940–1963), ''

Freie Arbeiter Stimme ''Freie Arbeiter Stimme'' ( Daytshmerish spelling of romanized: ''Fraye arbeṭer shṭime'', ''lit.'' 'Free Voice of Labor' also spelled with an extra '' mem'' ) was a Yiddish-language anarchist newspaper published from New York City's Lower ...

'' (New york, 1890–1977), ''Dos Fraye Vort'', ''

Industrial Worker The ''Industrial Worker'', "the voice of revolutionary industrial unionism", is the magazine of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW, a.k.a., "Wobblies"). It is now released quarterly. The publication was printed and edited by union labor, ...

'', ''Freedom'' (New York, 1919) and ''

The Match! Current publications The following is a chronological list of noteworthy anarchist periodicals that are still being published. Defunct The following is a chronological list of noteworthy anarchist and proto-anarchist periodicals that are now de ...

'' (Tucson, 1969-). However, he is most notable for two works: his published letters, the ''Boris Yelensky papers, 1939-1975'', which consists of a series of letters (including to

Lucy Parsons Lucy E. Parsons ( – March 7, 1942) was a US social anarchist and later anarcho-communist, well-known throughout her long life for her fiery speeches and writings. She was a founding member of the Industrial Workers of the World. There are d ...

), essays, novels, and memoirs, including photographs;Maximoff, Gregori Petrovich. Syndicalists in the Russian Revolution. South London DAM-IWA, 1985.Maximoff, Grigorii Petrovich. "The guillotine at work." Twenty Years Terror in Russia (1940). and ''In the Struggle for Equality'', a history of the Anarchist Red Cross.Yelensky, Boris. "In the Struggle for Equality." (1958).

References

External links

Access to Yelensky's PapersHistory of the Anarchist Red Cross by Boris YelenskyIn the Social Storm: Memoirs of the Russian Revolution by Boris YelenskyBoris Yelensky's memoirs of the Russian Revolution condensed into one siteThe Struggle for Equality full versionBoris Yelensky Papers on the IISH
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yelensky, Boris 1889 births 1974 deaths 20th-century American Jews 20th-century American journalists 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century anarchists 20th-century Russian Jews 20th-century Russian journalists 20th-century Russian male writers 20th-century Russian non-fiction writers American anarchist writers American male journalists American male non-fiction writers American people of Russian-Jewish descent Emigrants from the Russian Empire to the United States Jewish American journalists Jewish American non-fiction writers Jewish anarchists Print journalists Russian anarchists Russian male journalists Russian male non-fiction writers