Moses Rischin
Encyclopedia
Moses Rischin is a United States
Jewish historian
, author
, lecturer
, editor
, and Emeritus
Professor
of History at San Francisco State University
. He coined the phrase New Mormon History
in a 1969 article of the same name. Rischin is from New York City
. His undergraduate studies were at Brooklyn College
. Harvard University
awarded him a Ph.D.
in 1957. In addition to his professorship, he sits on the board for the Journal of American Ethnic History and on the council of the American Jewish History Society. There is an annual lecture given in his honor at the Western Jewish History Center
, where he is director. There is a collection of historical essays published in Rischin's honor, and a supporting character in Meyer Meyer may have been partly modeled after him.
Rischin is considered an authority on American ethnic and immigration history
and a pioneer in the field of American Jewish history
. Historian Selma Berrol, however, has challenged the minimal treatment Rischin has given the tensions between earlier German Jews and later Russian Jews in America.
During the Monica Lewinsky scandal, Rischin was a signatory of "Historians in Defense of the Constitution" wherein 400 historians criticized efforts to impeach
President Bill Clinton
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Jewish historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
, author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, lecturer
Lecturer
Lecturer is an academic rank. In the United Kingdom, lecturer is a position at a university or similar institution, often held by academics in their early career stages, who lead research groups and supervise research students, as well as teach...
, editor
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
, and Emeritus
Emeritus
Emeritus is a post-positive adjective that is used to designate a retired professor, bishop, or other professional or as a title. The female equivalent emerita is also sometimes used.-History:...
Professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
of History at San Francisco State University
San Francisco State University
San Francisco State University is a public university located in San Francisco, California. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers over 100 areas of study from nine academic colleges...
. He coined the phrase New Mormon History
New Mormon history
New Mormon history refers to a style of reporting the history of Mormonism by both Mormon and non-Mormon scholars which departs from earlier more polemical styles of history...
in a 1969 article of the same name. Rischin is from New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. His undergraduate studies were at Brooklyn College
Brooklyn College
Brooklyn College is a senior college of the City University of New York, located in Brooklyn, New York, United States.Established in 1930 by the New York City Board of Higher Education, the College had its beginnings as the Downtown Brooklyn branches of Hunter College and the City College of New...
. Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
awarded him a Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in 1957. In addition to his professorship, he sits on the board for the Journal of American Ethnic History and on the council of the American Jewish History Society. There is an annual lecture given in his honor at the Western Jewish History Center
Western Jewish History Center
The Western Jewish History Center of the Judah L. Magnes Museum in Berkeley, California, established in 1967, contains a library and a large collection of archival material that documents and preserves the history and experiences of the Jewish community of the Western United States from the start...
, where he is director. There is a collection of historical essays published in Rischin's honor, and a supporting character in Meyer Meyer may have been partly modeled after him.
Rischin is considered an authority on American ethnic and immigration history
History of immigration to the United States
The history of immigration to the United States is a continuing story of peoples from more populated continents, particularly Europe and also Africa and Asia, crossing oceans to the new land. Historians do not treat the first indigenous settlers as immigrants. Starting around 1600 British and...
and a pioneer in the field of American Jewish history
History of the Jews in the United States
The history of the Jews in the United States , has been part of the American national fabric since colonial times.Until the 1830s the Jewish community of Charleston, South Carolina was the most numerous in North America. With the large scale immigration of Jews from Germany in the 19th century,...
. Historian Selma Berrol, however, has challenged the minimal treatment Rischin has given the tensions between earlier German Jews and later Russian Jews in America.
During the Monica Lewinsky scandal, Rischin was a signatory of "Historians in Defense of the Constitution" wherein 400 historians criticized efforts to impeach
Impeachment
Impeachment is a formal process in which an official is accused of unlawful activity, the outcome of which, depending on the country, may include the removal of that official from office as well as other punishment....
President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
.
Books
- The Promised City: New York's Jews, 1870-1914 (Harvard University PressHarvard University PressHarvard University Press is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. In 2005, it published 220 new titles. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. Its current director is William P...
) - Jews of the American West, with John LivingstonJohn LivingstonJohn Allen Livingston was a Canadian naturalist, broadcaster, author, and teacher. He was most known as the voice-over of the Hinterland Who's Who series of television zoological shorts in the 1960s....
(Wayne State University PressWayne State University PressWayne State University Press , founded in 1941, is a university press that is part of Wayne State University. It publishes under its own name and also the imprints Painted Turtle and Great Lakes Books....
) ISBN 0-8143-2171-2
Articles and essays
- “The New Mormon History,” American West 6, March 1969, 49.
- "The Jewish Experience in America: A View from the West"
- Foreword to California Jews (2003) Brandeis University Press