LOUIS B. BOUDIN

LOUIS B. BOUDIN (February 15, 1874-May 29, 1952)

Foreshortened name of L. Budyanov (Boudianoff), he was born in a village in the Kanyev region, Kiev district.  He came to the United States in 1891.  In 1898 he completed his studies to be a lawyer.  From 1897 he was participating in the Jewish socialist press, mainly with Tsukunft (Future), Arbeter-tsaytung (Workers’ newspaper), Naye tsayt (New times), Progres (Progress), Nayer gayst (New spirit), Sotsyal-demokrat (Social democrat), Forverts (Forward), and Di naye velt (The new world).  He published political-economic treatises and was a pioneer in Marxist literary criticism.  He wrote also for English- and German-language newspapers, and he published works in English on Marxism and constitutional rights.  Over the years 1910-1912, he was on the editorial board of Tsukunft.  From 1917 he was a leftist socialist, and then in 1919 he left the Socialist Party.  He is considered a major expert on parliamentary rights.  He primarily defended unions and all manner of other laborers’ organizations and their leaders.  For twenty-four years he was tied to the American “ORT” (Association for the Promotion of Skilled Trades), and over the years 1933-1948 he was chairman of the managing committee of “ORT.”  Among his books: The Theoretical System of Karl Marx in the Light of Recent Criticism (Chicago: Charles H. Kerr, 1907), 286 pp., which was translated into German and Russian; and Government by Judiciary (New York: W. Godwin, Inc., 1932), 2 vols.

Louis B. Boudin in 1907

Sources: Zalmen Reyzen, Leksikon, vol. 1; Yevreyskaya entsiklopediya (Jewish encyclopedia) (St. Petersburg), vol. 5; Gr. Aronson, in Tsukunft (New York) (May-June 1942); M. Vintshevski, in Tsukunft (January 1912), pp. 6-11; M. Zametkin, in Tsukunft (October 1907), pp. 51-58; Y. Milkh, in Tsukunft (March 1907), pp. 39-44; Dr. Y. A. Merison, “Der nayer anarkhizm” (The new anarchism), Tsukunft (May 1907), pp. 27-33; Shmuel Niger, in Tog (New York) (August 28, 1932); Niger in Tsukunft (December 1940); Leon Kobrin, Derinerungen fun a yidishn dramaturg (Remembrances of a Jewish dramatist), vol. 1 (New York, 1925), p. 83; E. Shulman, Geshikhte fun der yidisher literatur in amerike (History of Jewish literature in America) (New York, 1943), pp. 64, 78-83; Moyshe Shtarkman, in Tsukunft (May-June 1942); Morgn-frayhayt (May 31, 1952); F. A. N., “Tog eyn, tog oys” (Day in, day out), Morgn-frayhayt (June 5, 1952).