Lenni Brenner
Encyclopedia
Lenni Brenner is an American
Marxist
Trotskyist writer. In the 1960s, Brenner was a prominent civil rights activist and a prominent opponent of the Vietnam War
.
Brenner was born into an Orthodox Jewish family. He became an atheist at age 10 or 12 and a Marxist
at age 15. Brenner's involvement with the American Civil Rights Movement
began when he met James Farmer
of the Congress of Racial Equality
, later the organizer of the "freedom rides" of the early 1960s. He also worked with Bayard Rustin
, later the organizer of Martin Luther King's 1963 "I Have a Dream
" march on Washington. (Neither were Marxists.)
Brenner was arrested three times during civil rights sit-ins in the San Francisco Bay Area
. He spent 39 months in jail when a court revoked his probation for marijuana
possession, because of his activities during the Berkeley Free Speech Movement at the University of California in 1964.
He was an anti-war activist from the first days of the Vietnam War
, speaking frequently at rallies in the Bay Area. In 1963 he organized the Committee for Narcotic Reform in Berkeley. In 1968 he co-founded the National Association for Irish Justice, the American affiliate of the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association
.
In the 1990s, he and Kwame Ture (aka Stokely Carmichael
), the legendary "Black Power" leader of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, co-founded the Committee against Zionism and Racism. They also published The Anti-War Activist.
In 2003, Brenner spoke at the inaugural meeting of Jews Against Zionism in , with his colleagues Alice Coy, Haim Bresheeth and Roland Rance who presented Brenner's book, "51 Documents: Zionist Collaboration with the Nazis".
His articles have also appeared in The Nation
, Amsterdam News, Jewish Guardian, Atlanta Constitution, Washington Report on Middle East Affairs
, Middle East Policy
, Middle East International, Journal of Palestine Studies
, New Statesman
, Al-Fajr and United Irishman
.
In 2002, he edited 51 Documents: Zionist Collaboration with the Nazis. It contains complete translations of many of the documents quoted in Zionism in the Age of the Dictators and The Iron Wall. In 2004, he edited Jefferson & Madison On Separation of Church and State: Writings on Religion and Secularism.
Brenner is said to be working on a memoir, tentatively called The World's Grouchiest Marxist.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Marxist
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
Trotskyist writer. In the 1960s, Brenner was a prominent civil rights activist and a prominent opponent of the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
.
Brenner was born into an Orthodox Jewish family. He became an atheist at age 10 or 12 and a Marxist
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
at age 15. Brenner's involvement with the American Civil Rights Movement
African-American Civil Rights Movement (1955-1968)
The African-American Civil Rights Movement refers to the movements in the United States aimed at outlawing racial discrimination against African Americans and restoring voting rights to them. This article covers the phase of the movement between 1955 and 1968, particularly in the South...
began when he met James Farmer
James L. Farmer, Jr.
James Leonard Farmer, Jr. was a civil rights activist and leader in the American Civil Rights Movement. He was the initiator and organizer of the 1961 Freedom Ride, which eventually led to the desegregation of inter-state transportation in the United States.In 1942, Farmer co-founded the Committee...
of the Congress of Racial Equality
Congress of Racial Equality
The Congress of Racial Equality or CORE was a U.S. civil rights organization that originally played a pivotal role for African-Americans in the Civil Rights Movement...
, later the organizer of the "freedom rides" of the early 1960s. He also worked with Bayard Rustin
Bayard Rustin
Bayard Rustin was an American leader in social movements for civil rights, socialism, pacifism and non-violence, and gay rights.In the pacifist Fellowship of Reconciliation , Rustin practiced nonviolence...
, later the organizer of Martin Luther King's 1963 "I Have a Dream
I Have a Dream
"I Have a Dream" is a 17-minute public speech by Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered on August 28, 1963, in which he called for racial equality and an end to discrimination...
" march on Washington. (Neither were Marxists.)
Brenner was arrested three times during civil rights sit-ins in the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
. He spent 39 months in jail when a court revoked his probation for marijuana
Cannabis (drug)
Cannabis, also known as marijuana among many other names, refers to any number of preparations of the Cannabis plant intended for use as a psychoactive drug or for medicinal purposes. The English term marijuana comes from the Mexican Spanish word marihuana...
possession, because of his activities during the Berkeley Free Speech Movement at the University of California in 1964.
He was an anti-war activist from the first days of the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, speaking frequently at rallies in the Bay Area. In 1963 he organized the Committee for Narcotic Reform in Berkeley. In 1968 he co-founded the National Association for Irish Justice, the American affiliate of the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association
Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association
The Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association was an organisation which campaigned for equal civil rights for the all the people in Northern Ireland during the late 1960s and early 1970s...
.
In the 1990s, he and Kwame Ture (aka Stokely Carmichael
Stokely Carmichael
Kwame Ture , also known as Stokely Carmichael, was a Trinidadian-American black activist active in the 1960s American Civil Rights Movement. He rose to prominence first as a leader of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and later as the "Honorary Prime Minister" of the Black Panther Party...
), the legendary "Black Power" leader of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, co-founded the Committee against Zionism and Racism. They also published The Anti-War Activist.
In 2003, Brenner spoke at the inaugural meeting of Jews Against Zionism in , with his colleagues Alice Coy, Haim Bresheeth and Roland Rance who presented Brenner's book, "51 Documents: Zionist Collaboration with the Nazis".
Writing
Brenner is the author of four books: Zionism in the Age of the Dictators, The Iron Wall: Zionist Revisionism from Jabotinsky to Shamir, Jews in America Today, and The Lesser Evil, a study of the Democratic Party. His books have been widely translated], and have been reviewed in 11 languages, to markedly mixed reviews.His articles have also appeared in The Nation
The Nation
The Nation is the oldest continuously published weekly magazine in the United States. The periodical, devoted to politics and culture, is self-described as "the flagship of the left." Founded on July 6, 1865, It is published by The Nation Company, L.P., at 33 Irving Place, New York City.The Nation...
, Amsterdam News, Jewish Guardian, Atlanta Constitution, Washington Report on Middle East Affairs
Washington Report on Middle East Affairs
The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs magazine, published nine times per year in Washington, D.C., focuses on "news and analysis from and about the Middle East and U.S...
, Middle East Policy
Middle East Policy
Middle East Policy is an academic peer-reviewed journal on the Middle East region in the field of foreign policy founded in 1982, published quarterly by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the Middle East Policy Council...
, Middle East International, Journal of Palestine Studies
Journal of Palestine Studies
The Journal of Palestine Studies is an academic journal established in 1971. It is published and distributed by University of California Press on behalf of the Institute for Palestine Studies. The current editor is Rashid Khalidi of Columbia University....
, New Statesman
New Statesman
New Statesman is a British centre-left political and cultural magazine published weekly in London. Founded in 1913, and connected with leading members of the Fabian Society, the magazine reached a circulation peak in the late 1960s....
, Al-Fajr and United Irishman
United Irishman
The United Irishman title has been a very popular newspaper title in Ireland and a number of newspapers have been published under the title.*...
.
In 2002, he edited 51 Documents: Zionist Collaboration with the Nazis. It contains complete translations of many of the documents quoted in Zionism in the Age of the Dictators and The Iron Wall. In 2004, he edited Jefferson & Madison On Separation of Church and State: Writings on Religion and Secularism.
Brenner is said to be working on a memoir, tentatively called The World's Grouchiest Marxist.
External links
- Lenni Brenner. Beyond the UN's Rhetoric: Holocaust History, CounterPunch, January 29, 2005.
- Lenni Brenner. The plot to stigmatize "51 Documents" on Amazon.com, CounterPunch, May 25, 2005.
- "It's All Rabbis and No Jews": An Interview with Lenni Brenner
- Interview with Lenni Brenner by JK Fowler for The Mantle March 19, 2011