Box also contains 6036/024.

"The Gentle Warrior: Rose Pesotta, Anarchist and Labor Organizer" is a dissertation presented to the faculty of the Graduate School of Cornell University by Elaine Leeder in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of doctor of philosophy in June 1985. Leeder later published the book now titled "The Gentle General: Rose Pesotta, Anarchist and Labor Organizer" in 1993.



The dissertation discusses the conditions in the small Jewish villages, shtetls, of Russia in the late 19th century and provides background information on Pesotta's childhood, and the early events and education that began her rebellion and radical thinking that led to her eventual departure to the United States. Jewish life for new immigrants in New York City is examined in relation to Pesotta, as well as an overview of the hierarchy of the workers in the garment industry and the sexual discrimination in the shops where she now found herself employed. Pesotta continued her quest for education, became active in the shops, and asserted her interest in radicalism and anarchism. The author provides a detailed discussion of anarchist ideology and an extensive history of the anarchist movement in the United States in Chapter Two.



Pesotta became involved with the Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti case and Chapter Three details her involvement with the case and the individuals she met on the defense committee including Albert Martin (born Frank Lopez) whom she would later briefly marry. Pesotta not only volunteered at the defense offices, but also visited Sacco and Vanzetti in jail, attended court proceedings, and corresponded often, and the case and outcome had a profound effect on her. The dissertation examines the shifting focus in labor to organizing large numbers of women during the Depression, contradictory to continued workplace discrimination and segregation and the absence of women from leadership roles in unions. Pesotta continued her union activities, including, striking, picketing, and establishing educational and recreational programs while making significant advancements in organizing dress shops on the west coast. Recounted are her achievements and feelings towards her election to office within the union, working with David Dubinsky, the organizing missions that required travel from city to city and her work with other unions and industries. Also detailed are the complications that arose and the opposition with Dubinsky and the executive board that ultimately led to Pesotta's resignation.



In the chapter devoted to Pesotta's political work, related is her involvement with the "Road to Freedom" (monthly anarchist journal), the International Anarchist Group that met in New York City, and her friendship and work with Emma Goldman, who became her mentor and inspirational leader. Pesotta became engaged in many political causes, anarchist work, and civic organizations, and her philosophy and ideology regarding anarchism and her beliefs are outlined. The remainder of the biography discusses Pesotta's family, friends and various relationships, as well as the trajectory of her later career, her travels, and success as an author.



Additional material on Rose Pesotta including primary documents and personal collections includes the Rose Pesotta Papers at the New York Public Library, the John Nicholas Beffel Collection at the Walter P. Reuther Library, which contains Pesotta's reports, chapters and manuscript drafts in which she collaborated with Beffel, and the Rose Pesotta Papers, 1919-1961 (5928) at the Kheel Center, Cornell University.