The London Years - Paperback

by Rudolf Rocker (Author), Colin Ward (Introduction by)

Rudolf Rocker, a German Catholic fleeing political persecution, moved to London to become the acknowledged leader of the Yiddish-speaking Jewish anarchists. There, at a time of mass immigration by impoverished Jews--persecuted by a right-wing press and an "anti-alien" movement--he organized demonstrations of up to 25,000 against the contemporary Russian pogroms. Rocker established the Jewish Bakers Union in a community action where housewives would only buy union label bread, and most famously, in 1912, organized a general strike of Jewish tailors, which abolished the sweatshop system. The London Years is the autobiography of a remarkable man and chronicles this vanished world.

Rudolf Rocker, the main theorist of anarcho-syndicalism, edited numerous Yiddish political and cultural journals.

Author Biography

Rudolf Rocker is one of Anarchism's most cherished characters. Born in Germany, Rocker settled in Britain in 1895, learned to read and write in Yiddish and became a beloved member of the Jewish Anarchist movement until his death. As a proponent of the workers movement known as Anarcho-syndicalism, Rocker wrote for journals in German, Yiddish and English throughout the world. Colin Ward is the author, and editor of dozens of books on urban planning, architecture, education, and anarchism. His most recent titles include Anarchy In Action, Talking Anarchy, and The Allotment