2/9 | Yortsayt of Paul Levi
Today in Yiddishkayt… February 9 Yortsayt of Paul Levi, Political Leader Paul Levi was born March 11, 1883 in Hechingen, Germany to a Jewish middle-class family. He joined the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) in 1906 and served as Rosa Luxemburg‘s lawyer when she was tried for inciting soldiers to disobedience in 1914. In 1916, Levi settled in Switzerland where he became active with the Zimmerwald Left and the Spartacus League, which became the Communist Party of Germany (KPD). After the failure of the German Revolution of 1918–1919, and the killing of the KPD’s...
Read More1/15 | Yortsayt of Rosa Luxemburg
Today in Yiddishkayt… January 15 Yortsayt of Rosa Luxemburg, Revolutionary Philosopher Rosa Luxemburg was born on March 5, 1871 in Zamość, the youngest of five children. Her family lived near the old market square, not far from the home of Y.L. Peretz. She became politically active at a young age and while she finished the gymnasium in Warsaw at the top of her class, she was denied a medal because of her “oppositional attitude toward the authorities.” In 1889, she moved to Zurich where she met exiled Russian revolutionaries and her partner, Leo Jogiches, with whom she...
Read More12/23 | Birthday of Friedrich Wolf
Today in Yiddishkayt… December 23 Birthday of Friedrich Wolf, German Jewish Writer The leading leftist playwright in pre-World War II Germany Friedrich Wolf was born today, December 23, 1888 in Neuwied, Germany. Wolf studied medicine and became a physician until he was jailed as a conscientious objector during the First World War. From his very first drama, including Poor Conrad, produced in 1924, Wolf brought contemporary social problems and the struggle of the working class to the stage. In 1928, Wolf famously proclaimed “Kunst ist Waffe (Art is a weapon)!” and his...
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