Blackwell Reference Online

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Alexander Berkman was a leading US and Russian anarchist activist and author from the 1890s to his death in 1936. Born Ovsei Osipovich Berkman in Vilnius, Lithuania in 1870, Berkman moved to the US at age 16 following the death of his parents. He ardently embraced anarchism and syndicalism following the Chicago Haymarket Tragedy in 1886 and through his association with his lover, Emma Goldman . In the pages of his own journal Blast (1915–17) Berkman consistently advocated direct action and political violence as critical acts of “propaganda of the deed,” a notion that individual acts of violence could encourage mass uprisings. In 1892 Berkman was arrested after his attempting to assassinate industrialist Henry Clay Frick during the Homestead strike. Hoping to arouse the striking workers to rebellion through the inspiration of his act, Berkman provoked only the contempt of the workers, who threw their sympathies over to Frick. Following his release after 14 years in prison, Berkman was a devoted anarchist organizer, notably with the Ferrer Modern School that sought to educate children outside the restrictions of the Church, and contributed to Emma Goldman's publication Mother Earth . A victim of the state repression by US Attorney General Mitchell Palmer under the notorious Red Scare, Berkman was arrested and imprisoned for two years for opposing conscription and US entry ... log in or subscribe to read full text