
Trotsky in New York, 1917
A Radical on the Eve of Revolution
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Narrado por:
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Stefan Rudnicki
Lev Davidovich Trotsky burst onto the world stage in November 1917 as coleader of a Marxist Revolution seizing power in Russia. It made him one of the most recognized personalities of the 20th century, a global icon of radical change. Yet just months earlier, this same Lev Trotsky was a nobody, a refugee expelled from Europe, writing obscure pamphlets and speeches, barely noticed outside a small circle of fellow travelers. Where had he come from to topple Russia and change the world? Where else? New York City.
Between January and March 1917, Trotsky found refuge in the United States. America had kept itself out of the European Great War, leaving New York the freest city on earth. During his time there - just over 10 weeks - Trotsky immersed himself in the local scene. He settled his family in the Bronx, edited a radical left wing tabloid in Greenwich Village, sampled the lifestyle, and plunged headlong into local politics. His clashes with leading New York socialists over the question of US entry into World War I would reshape the American left for the next 50 years.
©2016 Kenneth D. Ackerman (P)2016 Blackstone Audio, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...




















loved it!
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An unexpected link between Russia and USA
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So many avenues
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Meaty, original, and thought provoking
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Good but a lot of fillers
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Fascinating look at both Trotsky and NYC
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Small Subject Stretched into Good Book
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Trotsky’s short time in New York City and why he was there
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Great Story; Ludicrous Conclusion
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On arriving, he quickly threw himself into his work. He regularly wrote for a Russian language newspaper and contributed to many other papers. New York City was an amalgam of all of Europe. As an example, it had four daily newspapers in Russian, six in Yiddish, and three in German. As such, it was also a gathering point for the many revolutionaries who had been driven out of Europe over the recent decades and there were lectures and political meetings in various languages almost every night, which Trotsky took good advantage of. He gave speeches against capitalism and the war, though he barely spoke any English, instead speaking in German or Russian. He attracted the attention of the many Eastern European immigrants in New York at that time. He immediately threw himself into Jewish and socialist politics. He clashed strongly with many local leaders who understood that the best way to bring change in America was not through revolution but through a gradual process of changing people’s minds. He argued vehemently with local leaders over US entry into World War I.
America was one of the few countries that would take him at that and America was also in political upheaval. President Wilson had just won reelection promising to keep America out of the war and when he arrived the US was still neutral. But, in the short 10 weeks he was there, things changed rapidly and ended with Wilson declaring war on Germany.
And then came the news that the Czar had abdicated and a republic was being formed. Lenin was able to negotiate passage from his exile in Switzerland through Germany and Trotsky helped to organize a group of Russian returnees to all charter a ship together to return to Russia. He was waylaid by the British and held in Canada until the news got out and public outcry forced them to release him and he was off to Moscow to meet Lenin and organize the overthrow of the republic in favor a a new socialist state.
Trotsky was impressed with America. He was surprised that people could freely express their opinions publicly and even in writing without fear of arrest. He was shocked that they could strongly oppose the government. But, it was the dynamism and creativity that especially impressed him and he often talked about America afterwards. He predicted that America would soon become the leader of the world, replacing Europe. He later wrote, “The figures showing the growth of American exports during the war astounded me. And it was those same figures that not only predetermined America’s intervention in the war, but the decisive part that the United States would play in the world after the war.” He stated that, in the future, “all the problems of our planet will be decided upon American soil." He was impressed with America’s technology and science. “To have Bolshevism shod in the American way, that is our task!” The gap between him and Lenin grew and as Stalin’s power grew after Lenin’s death, Trotsky was sidelined and eventually exiled.
Ten weeks plus a few days. This book is the first book to focus on that time in America with, of course, plenty of background information to give the context that makes this understandable. Ackerman does an excellent job of putting it all together in a relatively brief package that both answers and raises so many questions and causes one to wonder what might have happened if he had stayed there even longer. This is a very interesting book for anyone who loves the little lesser known events of history.
The Irony of Real Life
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