Charles Hope Kerr
Encyclopedia
Charles Hope Kerr a son of abolitionists
, was a vegetarian
and Unitarian
in 1886 when he established Charles H Kerr Company Publishers
in Chicago right before the Haymarket Riot. Over the years, his company became a leading publisher of socialist, anarchist, and Wobbly works. Kerr was noted for his translation from the French of the radical workers' anthem, "The Internationale
;" his version became the English words sung in the United States (although a different, anonymous English translation is sung in Britain and Ireland). Kerr's version was widely circulated in the Little Red Songbook
of the Industrial Workers of the World
.
Abolitionism
Abolitionism is a movement to end slavery.In western Europe and the Americas abolitionism was a movement to end the slave trade and set slaves free. At the behest of Dominican priest Bartolomé de las Casas who was shocked at the treatment of natives in the New World, Spain enacted the first...
, was a vegetarian
Vegetarianism
Vegetarianism encompasses the practice of following plant-based diets , with or without the inclusion of dairy products or eggs, and with the exclusion of meat...
and Unitarian
Unitarianism
Unitarianism is a Christian theological movement, named for its understanding of God as one person, in direct contrast to Trinitarianism which defines God as three persons coexisting consubstantially as one in being....
in 1886 when he established Charles H Kerr Company Publishers
Charles H Kerr Company Publishers
Charles H. Kerr Publishing Company was established in Chicago, Illinois in 1886 by Charles Hope Kerr, originally to promote his Unitarian and vegetarian views. As Kerr's personal interests moved from religion to Marxism and he became interested in the labor movement, the company's publications took...
in Chicago right before the Haymarket Riot. Over the years, his company became a leading publisher of socialist, anarchist, and Wobbly works. Kerr was noted for his translation from the French of the radical workers' anthem, "The Internationale
The Internationale
The Internationale is a famous socialist, communist, social-democratic and anarchist anthem.The Internationale became the anthem of international socialism, and gained particular fame under the Soviet Union from 1922 to 1944, when it was that communist state's de facto central anthem...
;" his version became the English words sung in the United States (although a different, anonymous English translation is sung in Britain and Ireland). Kerr's version was widely circulated in the Little Red Songbook
Little Red Songbook
thumb|180px|right|The Little Red SongbookSince the founding of the Industrial Workers of the World, also known as the IWW, songs have played a big part in spreading the message of the One Big Union...
of the Industrial Workers of the World
Industrial Workers of the World
The Industrial Workers of the World is an international union. At its peak in 1923, the organization claimed some 100,000 members in good standing, and could marshal the support of perhaps 300,000 workers. Its membership declined dramatically after a 1924 split brought on by internal conflict...
.
External links
- http://www.marxists.org/subject/usa/eam/spapubs-kerrlist.html Works published by the company during Kerr's lifetime
- Charles H. Kerr Company Records at the Newberry Library