James Weinstein | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1926-07-17)July 17, 1926 New York City, U.S. |
| Died | June 16, 2005(2005-06-16) (aged 78) Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Education | |
| Occupations |
|
| Notable work | In These Times |
| Political party |
|
| Spouses |
|
| Children | 2 |
James Weinstein (July 17, 1926 – June 16, 2005) was an American historian and editor best known as the founder and publisher ofIn These Times, a progressive magazine started in 1976 in Chicago.
James Weinstein was born in Manhattan on July 17, 1926, to an affluent family whose money came from real estate.[1] He served in theUnited States Navy during World War II, and afterward, earned a bachelor's degree in government fromCornell University in 1949, and a master's degree in history fromColumbia University in 1956.[1][2]
As a young man, Weinstein supported the 1948 presidential campaign ofHenry A. Wallace, who ran on theProgressive Party ticket. The campaign was backed by theCommunist Party, which he joined that same year.[1] As a member of the Communist Party, Weinstein made the acquaintance ofJulius Rosenberg and was heavily surveilled by theFederal Bureau of Investigation, whose file on him ran over 2,000 pages in length.[2] Weinstein left the party in 1956, in objection to the Soviet Union's repression of theHungarian Revolution.[1]
In1966, Weinstein ran for theUnited States House of Representatives fromNew York's 19th congressional district as an independent socialist candidate, advocating an immediate end to American involvement in theVietnam War, but he lost, receiving 3.8% of the vote.[3] After foundingIn These Times, he continued to identify as a socialist, but in his editorials, he encouraged leftists to work within the Democratic Party.[1][2] In the 1980s, Weinstein publicly affirmed that he believed that the Rosenbergs had been spies, which alienated some on the left.[1]
Weinstein lived and worked in San Francisco,Madison, Wisconsin, andCoventry, England, teaching at theUniversity of Warwick's Centre for the Study of Social History, before becoming a central figure among left-wing Democrats in his adopted home of Chicago, where he foundedIn These Times in 1976.[1] He was inspired by Civil Rights iconJulian Bond, and intellectualsNoam Chomsky andHerbert Marcuse, both teaching at the University of Chicago at the time.[4] He edited the magazine until he retired in 1999.[1]
Weinstein wrote numerous history books, includingThe Decline of Socialism in America,The Corporate Ideal in the Liberal State, andThe Long Detour: The History and Future of the American Left.[1] He also founded the journalsStudies on the Left andSocialist Revolution (later renamedSocialist Review and ultimatelyRadical Society).[1] He was one of the founders of Modern Times Bookstore in San Francisco.[1]
Weinstein was a committed fan of theChicago Cubs and enjoyed experimenting with culinary recipes. He was married four times and divorced three times, with his fourth marriage, to Beth Maschinot, lasting until his death; he had two children from his first marriage.[1]
Weinstein died from brain cancer at his home in Chicago on June 16, 2005, aged 78.[1]
{{cite journal}}:Cite journal requires|journal= (help)