Ben Green
Template:TOCnestleft Ben Green died in Skokie, Illinois in October 1991, age 77.
Green ran a shoe store in Chicago for many years - founded in 1945 under the name Adams Bootery Inc.
He was survived by his wife of 52 years Florence Green, a son Kenneth Green and a daughter Billie Rosman.[1].
Shoe workers
Ben Green helped organize the Retail Shoe Workers Union[2].
WW2
During WW2 Green worked as a lathe operator in a defense plant, but was fired for his union and political activities[3].
Chicago Committee to Defend the Bill of Rights
1960 Chicago Committee to Defend the Bill of Rights founders were Boris Brail, Milt Cohen, Richard Criley, Ben Green, Prof. Robert Havighurst, Charles Lippitz, Rev.Victor Obenhaus[4].
In 1965 Ben Green was a Board Member of Chicago Committee to Defend the Bill of Rights[5]
In 1970, the Board of Directors of the then Communist Party USA front Chicago Committee to Defend the Bill of Rights consisted of Rev. Frederic E. Sau, Harry Barnard, Boris Brail, Edward Carey, Milt Cohen, Ernest DeMaio ,Rev.William D. Faw, Richard Galloway, Prof. Charles H. George, Prof. Margaret Y. George, Ben Green, Pearl Hart, Dr. Hyman J. Hirshfield, David C. Jensen, Daniel Kaufman, Rev. S. Hunter Leggitt, Harry Mack, Rev. Daniel J. Malette, Lafayette Marsh, Rev. Francis J. McGrath, Akiro Makino , Ruth Muench, Isadore Pomerantz, Jesse Prosten, Don Rose, Norman Roth, Dr. Boris Rubenstein, Evelyn Salk, Thomas Slater, Walter Soroka, Jack Spiegel, Prof. William Starr, Lynward Stevenson, Edmonia Swanson, Gil Terry, Rev.C. T. Vivian, Otto Wander, Rabbi Burr Yampol, Dr. Quentin Young[6].
Black Panthers
In the 1960s Green served as treasurer of a free health clinic sponsored by the Black Panther Party[7].
Illinois Communist Party
A partial list of sponsors for a January 19, 1973 Reception in Chicago for Communist Party USA leader Claude Lightfoot included;
Linda Appelhans, Margaret Appelhans, Arnold Becchetti, Leon Beverly, Richard Criley, Reverend Martin Deppe, Ishmael Flory, Frances Gabow, Ben Green, Bill Hampton, FatherJohn Hill, Mrs. Christine Johnson, Jack Kling, Attorney Max Maiman, Margaret Palmer, John Pappademos, Ted Pearson, A. A. Rayner, Jr., Harold Rogers, Norman Roth, Attorney Irving Steinberg, Gil Terry, Robbylee Terry, Charles Wilson and Sylvia Woods[8].
In 1976 Ben Green was nominated as a candidate for the Illinois Communist Party USA as an elector for the Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates of the Communist Party USA, Gus Hall and Jarvis Tyner.[9]
New American Movement
In 1981 the Lucy Parsons Chapter of the New American Movement and friends honored Milt Cohen and Vicky Starr for their many years of activity in the causes for people's progress and democracy. The members of NAM listed were: Alba Alexander, Bill Barclay, Dan Gilman, Roger Gilman, Debby Holdstein, Rob Persons, Miriam Rabban, Ralph Scott, Julie Skurski, Peg Stroebel, Monty Tarbox and Ed Kucinsky. The friends of NAM listed were: Florence Green and Ben Green, Bob Reed of Seattle, Judy MacLean of San Francisco, Max Gordon of NYC, Quentin Young and Ruth Young of Chicago, Clarence Lipschutz and Peggy Lipschutz of Evanston, Miriam Bazell, Florence Gibbon of Chicago, Bronwen Zwirner of New Bedford, Leonard Lamb and Constance Lamb of Astoria, Helene Susman and Bill Susman of Great Neck, Corinne Golden of Chicago, Robert Havighurst and Edythe Havighurst of Chicago, Sara Heslep, Sandy Barty, Clara Diamont, Pete Seeger, Steve Nelson, Hannah Frisch, Sue Cohen, Gil Green of NYC, Joan Powers, Clarence Stoecker and Rebecca Hobbs of Chicago, James Bond of Oakland, Pat McGauley, Gabby Rosenstein of Santa Monica, Karl Cannon and Fay Cannon of Camarillo, Loriel Busenbard and Steven Starr, Daniel Starr, Beth Starr and Bob Starr (children of Vicky Starr) were listed as friends of the Lucy Parsons Chapter of the New American Movement.[10]
Later activism
Ben Green was an officer of the Skokie American Alliance of Retired Persons and helped to found the Peace Museum. For many years he was chairman of Modern Books[11].
References
- ↑ Chicago Tribune, October 31, 1991, Section 2, page 9
- ↑ Chicago Tribune, October 31, 1991, Section 2, page 9
- ↑ Chicago Tribune, October 31, 1991, Section 2, page 9
- ↑ http://www.ccdbr.org/
- ↑ Chicago Committee to Defend the Bill of Rights Letterhead Feb 1965
- ↑ Full text of "The nationwide drive against law enforcement intelligence operations : hearing before the Subcommittee to Investigate the Administration of the Internal Security Act and Other Internal Security Laws of the Committee on the Judiciary, United States Senate, Ninety-fourth Congress, first session page 151
- ↑ Chicago Tribune, October 31, 1991, Section 2, page 9
- ↑ Full text of "The nationwide drive against law enforcement intelligence operations : hearing before the Subcommittee to Investigate the Administration of the Internal Security Act and Other Internal Security Laws of the Committee on the Judiciary, United States Senate, Ninety-fourth Congress, first session
- ↑ 1976 Communist Party Electoral Petition.
- ↑ 10th Anniversary Booklet for the New American Movement, 1981
- ↑ Chicago Tribune, October 31, 1991, Section 2, page 9