Letter (with A. Berkman) to Fitzie

By Emma Goldman (1920)

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Untitled Anarchism Letter (with A. Berkman) to Fitzie

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(1869 - 1940)

Russian-American Mother of Anarcho-Communism

: She is an Anarchist, pure and simple. She represents the idea of Anarchism as framed by Josiah Warren, Proudhon, Bakunin, Kropotkin, Tolstoy. Yet she also understands the psychologic causes which induce a Caserio, a Vaillant, a Bresci, a Berkman, or a Czolgosz to commit deeds of violence. (From: Hippolyte Havel Bio.)
• "...slavery of any kind, compulsion under any form, must break down, and from which freedom, full and unlimited freedom, for all and from all must come." (From: "Anarchy Defended By Anarchists," by Emma Goldman ....)
• "It is the private dominion over things that condemns millions of people to be mere nonentities, living corpses without originality or power of initiative, human machines of flesh and blood, who pile up mountains of wealth for others and pay for it with a gray, dull and wretched existence for themselves." (From: "What I Believe," by Emma Goldman, New York World,....)
• "The individual educator imbued with honesty of purpose, the artist or writer of original ideas, the independent scientist or explorer, the non-compromising pioneers of social changes are daily pushed to the wall by men whose learning and creative ability have become decrepit with age." (From: "Minorities Versus Majorities," by Emma Goldman.)

(1870 - 1936)

Globe-Trotting Anarchist, Journalist, and Exposer of Bolshevik Tyranny

: He was a well-known anarchist leader in the United States and life-long friend of Emma Goldman, a young Russian immigrant whom he met on her first day in New York City. The two became lovers and moved in together, remaining close friends for the rest of Berkman's life. (From: Anarchy Archives.)
• "It must always be remembered - and remembered well - that revolution does not mean destruction only. It means destruction plus construction, with the greatest emphasis on the plus." (From: "The Russian Tragedy," by Alexander Berkman, The R....)
• "Or will the workers at last learn the great lesson Of the Russian Revolution that every government, whatever its fine name and nice promises is by its inherent nature, as a government, destructive of the very purposes of the social revolution? It is the mission of government to govern, to subject, to strenghten and perpetuate itself. It is high time the workers learn that only their own organized, creative efforts, free from Political and State interference, can make their age-long struggle for emancipation a lasting success." (From: "The Russian Tragedy," by Alexander Berkman, The R....)
• "But when the industries will again begin to function more or less systematically, [Soviet] Russia will face a very difficult and complex labor situation. Labor organizations, trade unions, do not exist in Russia, so far as the legitimate activities of such bodies are concerned. The Bolsheviki abolished them long ago. With developing production and capitalism, governmental as well as private, Russia will see the rise of a new proletariat whose interests must naturally come into conflict with those of the employing class. A bitter struggle is imminent. A struggle of a twofold nature: against the private capitalist, and against the State as an employer of labor." (From: "The Russian Tragedy," by Alexander Berkman, The R....)


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Letter (with A. Berkman) to Fitzie

 Photo by Jeanne Menjoulet, CC BY License

Photo by Jeanne Menjoulet,
CC BY License

Life be good to you. Whether we shall ever meet again, who know? I am losing hope, together with many other things I have been losing since December. But still I cling to the straws of possibilities. If I could at least hear from yourself as to how things stand, and whether he near or even the distant future may be looked forward to with any expectation. But in any event, and whatever may be hidden in the lap of the Gods for me, should even no line ever reach you from me again, you need but re-read my notes from Ellis Island, or to recollect their contents in case the notes do not exist any more, and to feel that they express my feelings now just as they did then. That is sufficient to say, and I know you will understand, even if you can reach me with no reply.

My thoughts fly to you across the seas and the mountains, and all the love of my heart.

Sasha

 Letter Itself

Letter Itself

Darling Stella and F.

I really have nothing to add to the above except my own anxiety about you all and my longing for word from you. For you precious child of mine I have some news about Orlenoff. he is alive and playing in Kasn. The sister of a girl I met here arrived from there. She was in his company and gave me all the news about him. You can can imagine I glad I was to learn that he is still active. The more so because no one here seemed to know anything about him. Some said he was dead, others that he is in an asylum. I understand Orlenoff is doing nothing new but that in his old reportoire he is as ever; as he then lock him up. It will be interesting to meet him under the new circumstances. Dearest, dearest girls if only you knew how hungry we are for word from you both and our other friends. I believe our inner struggle would not be quite so poignant as it now is, if only we were in touch with you and could exchange our thoughts. As it is the struggle grows more difficult to bear. We are glad we will soon be moving on, at least we will learn to know R. and at the same time gather the material which will enable us to make a thorough study of the forces which led to the Oct Revolution and its painful aftermath.

Sweetheart Stella. I am sending one of these letters to your dear mother with a line of greeting.

Good by my beloved children, hug Ian for me. Give my low love to Teddy, Mo, Max and family, Dr W, Dr Goldwater, the Cohn if they have returned, Ellen, Gertrude, Hutch, Bayard, Leonard Rose and Marie, Anna and Rose Strunsky, Edwina, our own faith H W, and all, all our friends and comrades. I embrace you both tenderly. Your devoted and lonely

Remember me also to Alec Cohn Polya, Hilda, Ella with much love, And dear Juju of course,

E

Source: Hand-transcribed note from the authors in our possession, see the Anarchy Archives.

From : Anarchy Archives

Chronology

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An icon of a book resting on its back.
June 15, 1920
Letter (with A. Berkman) to Fitzie — Publication.

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January 25, 2017; 5:53:14 PM (UTC)
Added to http://revoltlib.com.

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December 30, 2021; 11:26:40 AM (UTC)
Updated on http://revoltlib.com.

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