New Trends

Archive of New Trends, an anarchist publication produced out of New York City from September 1945 until August 1946.

Submitted by Juan Conatz on July 26, 2016

Comments

Juan Conatz

7 years 7 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by Juan Conatz on July 27, 2016

Thanks to the New York/New Jersey Workers Solidarity Alliance archives for scanning 7 issues of this. I kind of stumbled across this title, as it isn't mentioned in Andrew Cornell's book, and only briefly in Paul Avrich's Anarchist Voices.

There are 3 additional issues, going up to August 1946. I'm assuming it ceased publication because, the editor, Alexander Schapiro, passed away around this time.

syndicalist

7 years 7 months ago

In reply to by libcom.org

Submitted by syndicalist on July 27, 2016

Many of the same people who worked on "Challenege" or around some of the "The Vanguard" circles also worked on "New Trends" When I read the domestic labor articles I could see many of the writers held what I would, rightly or wrongly, call "soft core" perspectives. I think, thin, that one or two ended up in the Libertarian League. While scanning I was trying to figure out who some of the authors were. Been long time since I looked at the pub

Right quick, on a couple of the folks.

Gabriel Javsicas. * I met him a few times when he, Abe Bluestein ** and the Dolgoff's published the informative english language "News from Libertarian Spain". Although I found them insular and cranky at the time (except to our contemporary Maria G, who was from spain and did lots of their translations), we did our best to republish/distribute their stuff. While looking to see any of "NFLS"was on line (not really), I did come across one piece we ran
https://libcom.org/book/export/html/35778

It took me a long time to figure out some of their dynamics and why they acted the way they did towards us. The were veterans of the Spanish Revolution Period, put lots of time into defending and promoting the Revolution (Bluesmen actually being a CNT-FAI-AIT english language announcer). In some ways it was their "last" and lifelong project. They saw it as "theirs" and it was hard to understand at the time. Suspect there may have been more at play, but after 40 years of Francois repression, they did the best they could to help get the news out about the massive surge in CNT membership and libertarian movement. I salute their efforts and contributions in this regard.

John Nicholas Beffel *** I only knew of him He died a couple of years before I became an anarchist, then a wob. I would see mention of him and some of his stuff in the "Industrial Worker" and "The Match". He was well respected from what I could tell.

* https://books.google.com/books?id=8z8mdUYp-6gC&pg=PA66&lpg=PA66&dq=Gabriel+Javsicas&source=bl&ots=cXCndWY0xP&sig=Bf8nUZjonqLAnHt5wv6wqr7bHeg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjB6deNhpTOAhXEFj4KHddMBUoQ6AEIMDAD#v=onepage&q=Gabriel%20Javsicas&f=false

** https://libcom.org/history/abe-bluestein-anarchist-life-rebecca-dewitt

*** John Nicholas Beffel (1887 1973) "Radical journalist, publicist, and editor. A prolific writer of articles, essays, and publicity dealing with leftist issues, many pertaining to the syndicalist labor organization the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), anarchism and several noted anarchists. Beffel also produced short stories, autobiographical sketches and poems. Much of his activity involved defense committees for accused radicals in such cases as: the Mooney Billings Case in which the two men were found guilty of a fatal bombing during a Preparedness Day parade in San Francisco in 1916; the Centralia, Washington, case in which ten IWW's were accused of murder during an assault of IWW headquarters in connection with an Armistice Day parade in 1919; Sacco and Vanzetti; the Kentucky Miners Defense, stemming from the bloody “Battle of Evarts” in Harlan County, 1931; the case of Athos Terzani, an anti fascist accused of accidentally murdering a comrade during a fascist rally in New York in 1933; and the un¬solved political murder of anti fascist leader Carlo Tresca in 1943. Beffel was also involved with The League for Mutual Aid, a social service agency for leftists in need of assistance, founded by Roger Baldwin in 1920. Much of the boxes of correspondence relates to Beffel’s organizational and publicity efforts in these causes; much of the rest concerns his writings or those of his correspondents. Beffel edited several (published and unpblished) manuscripts, primarily by or about various anarchists (including Mikhail Bakunin, Rose Pesotta, and Harry Kelley, co-founder of the Ferrer colony in Stelton, N.J.), was interested in, and wrote about mysterious disappearances, and sometimes wrote articles under the names of Lancey Fitzgibbons, George Moresby, Mary Starland, Daniel Tower and others." http://dlib.nyu.edu/findingaids/html/tamwag/tam_055/bioghist.html

Interesting 1932 article ("Four Radicals") of his: http://www.unz.org/Pub/AmMercury-1932apr-00441
http://www.unz.org/Author/BeffelJohnNicholas