José A. Soler Papers
1972-2014
20 boxes 26.5 linear feet
Call no.: MS 864
A scholar of labor studies and activist, José Soler was born in New York City to a Dominican mother and Puerto Rican father and has been an activist in the cause of Puerto Rican independence and human rights since the 1970s. While a student at the University of New Mexico (BA 1972), Soler emerged as a leader in the Chicano rights organization, the Brown Berets, and while living in Puerto Rico in the late 1970s, he joined the Puerto Rican Socialist Party. Soler has subsequently worked in the labor movement as a shop steward, union organizer with UAW District 65, and labor journalist. As a committed Marxist and prolific writer and editor, he has taken part in causes ranging from anti-imperialist work in the Caribbean and Central America to the anti-apartheid struggle, and he has served on the Executive Board of the US Peace Council. From 1993 until his retirement in 2015, Soler worked as Director of the Arnold M. Dubin Labor Education Center at UMass Dartmouth where he has continued to work on behalf of public education and human rights and national self-determination.
The Soler Papers chronicle over forty years of a life-long activist’s interests and participation in left-wing political, labor, and social justice movements. There is a particular focus on topics relating to socialism and the pro-independence movement in Puerto Rico, anti-imperialist movements in South and Central America and Africa, and issues affecting Puerto Rican and Hispanic workers in the United States, New England, and the New York City area. Published and promotional materials such as periodicals, magazines, newsletters, and pamphlets make up the bulk of the collection, with extensive coverage of the concerns of the Puerto Rican Socialist Party (Partido Socialista Puertorriqueño, PSP), the Communist Party of the United States of America (CPUSA), as well as New Jersey chapters of the unions Communications Workers of America (CWA) and District 65, which eventually joined the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace, and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW). An additional seven boxes were added to the collection in June 2016, which remain unprocessed. The new materials offer additional documentation from the Dubin Labor Education Center and Soler’s work and interests in education (testing, privatization, and unions), labor, Marxist-Leninism, and various events in the United States and Latin America.
Background on José A. Soler
Activist and scholar of labor studies, José Antonio Soler del Valle was born in New York City to a Dominican mother and Puerto Rican father and has been an activist in the cause of Puerto Rican independence and human rights since the 1970s. While a student at the University of New Mexico (B.U.S. 1971) Soler was radicalized by the Chicano rights movement, and with others founded the Black Berets in Albuquerque, following the model of the Brown Berets (Los Boinas Marrones). Developing as an activist and leader, Soler took interest and action in the movement’s causes, such as anti-imperialism, self-determination, social justice, minority education and employment, and the protest of military action abroad in Vietnam and elsewhere. During this time Soler also met his first wife, Ester “Pepi†Bloom, a staff member at the graduate school. The couple married in 1969, and had their first son, Pedro Ramón Soler-Bloom, in 1971.
Soler’s concerns as an activist blossomed as he turned to his own heritage after graduation, moving to Puerto Rico and joining movements for Latin American self-determination, before returning to the east coast and New York City to care for his ailing father around 1976. While in Puerto Rico, Soler worked as a history teacher in Mayagüez and joined the Puerto Rican Socialist Party (Partido Socialista Puertorriqueño, PSP); a Marxist- Leninist party dedicated to Puerto Rican independence and socialism as fused ideals for an improved and liberated Puerto Rico. His wife, Pepi, was also a PSP member and militant in Puerto Rico and New York. During much of this time Soler was under investigation by the Puerto Rican secret police, who were compiling thousands of carpetas (files) on individuals and organizations deemed political threats, particularly those involved in the independence movement. The Party was not only involved with political, social, and labor activism locally, but also abroad, and was especially active in US cities with significant Puerto Rican populations such as New York City and Chicago. After leaving Puerto Rico, Soler was active in the PSP US Section for over ten years, serving as an organizer, leader, and editor for the New York and New Jersey PSP community, including time as the National (US) President of the PSP.
Soler’s interests in left-wing politics and social reform energized his involvement with numerous organizations working for social change and justice. He joined the Communist Party, USA, worked as a field development coordinator and National Organizing Director for Clergy and Laity Concerned, helped found the Coalition of the Latin American Trade Unionists (CLATU) and the National Alliance of Third World Journalists, and continued to support Puerto Rican self-determination and other independence movements. He became particularly devoted to union work and the labor movement, joining District 65, the New Jersey union known for its social and political activism, which eventually joined the UAW. He worked for several years as the managing editor of The Distributive Worker, the District 65 periodical, with responsibilities at the paper but also more broadly within the union and as its representative.
No longer married during this time, Soler married Grace DuBreuil in 1981, herself an ardent activist and communist, particularly involved with labor, women workers, Union 1199, and the anti-apartheid protest movement. DuBreuil was central to Soler’s interest and activism against apartheid, and he brought these interests to the PSP, which garnered the Party and its mission additional global recognition. Soler helped to organize the 75th African National Congress, and along with other district union leaders also founded Latinos Against Apartheid in the early 1980s in New York, a broad based coalition of community, labor, and religious activists and organizations.
Soler continued his work as a labor organizer, photographer, and bi-lingual journalist, holding formal union staff positions at multiple unions, most notably CWA Local 1040, while also pursuing his labor interests academically, earning a Master of Arts in Labor Studies from Rutgers University in 1991. He taught as an instructor and lecturer for the Labor Education Department and Extension Program at Rutgers, for the Labor Studies Program at Cornell University, and took over as Director at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Labor Education Center in 1993, a post he held until his retirement in 2015. Soler taught academic courses on the impact and history of the labor movement, the role of Latinos and other minorities in the labor movement, labor films, and on other related topics. These positions also involved continued work and collaboration with union leaders and members, and the running of workshops on organizing, worker duties and rights, collective bargaining, fundraising, and professional skill development. Soler completed his own formal education in 2001, with a Doctor of Education (ABD) from the University of Massachusetts Boston.
While happy to state an opinion or take a stand alone, as he did in a critical letter to a museum director who Soler felt required correcting on Puerto Rican history, Soler’s efforts as an activist and organizer are at their heart about community, solidarity, and bringing people together for sharing knowledge and creating action. Discussing his life’s commitments, Soler says that he has always been, and will always be, “married to the struggle.” With over twenty years as Director at the UMass Dartmouth Labor Education Center, and twenty additional years as a political, labor, education, and social change activist, Soler’s impact on southeast New England, New York, and New Jersey communities is immeasurable, and continues to this day.
A tireless protester, organizer, writer, educator, colleague, and comrade, Soler has led and joined numerous others in working for both local and global equality, justice, and peace. His Latino and minority identity was influential in some of his concerns, particularly in labor and in the primary political pursuit of his life’s work, the continued fight for Puerto Rican independence. Soler can trace this fight back to his great-grandfather, who participated in the Intentona of Yauco in 1897, and joined Puerto Rican patriots in Cabo Rojo fighting against the US invasion of Puerto Rico in July 1898. A century later, many still see Puerto Rico as under US imperialism and control. As Soler wrote,
Soler’s concerns as an activist blossomed as he turned to his own heritage after graduation, moving to Puerto Rico and joining movements for Latin American self-determination, before returning to the east coast and New York City to care for his ailing father around 1976. While in Puerto Rico, Soler worked as a history teacher in Mayagüez and joined the Puerto Rican Socialist Party (Partido Socialista Puertorriqueño, PSP); a Marxist- Leninist party dedicated to Puerto Rican independence and socialism as fused ideals for an improved and liberated Puerto Rico. His wife, Pepi, was also a PSP member and militant in Puerto Rico and New York. During much of this time Soler was under investigation by the Puerto Rican secret police, who were compiling thousands of carpetas (files) on individuals and organizations deemed political threats, particularly those involved in the independence movement. The Party was not only involved with political, social, and labor activism locally, but also abroad, and was especially active in US cities with significant Puerto Rican populations such as New York City and Chicago. After leaving Puerto Rico, Soler was active in the PSP US Section for over ten years, serving as an organizer, leader, and editor for the New York and New Jersey PSP community, including time as the National (US) President of the PSP.
Soler’s interests in left-wing politics and social reform energized his involvement with numerous organizations working for social change and justice. He joined the Communist Party, USA, worked as a field development coordinator and National Organizing Director for Clergy and Laity Concerned, helped found the Coalition of the Latin American Trade Unionists (CLATU) and the National Alliance of Third World Journalists, and continued to support Puerto Rican self-determination and other independence movements. He became particularly devoted to union work and the labor movement, joining District 65, the New Jersey union known for its social and political activism, which eventually joined the UAW. He worked for several years as the managing editor of The Distributive Worker, the District 65 periodical, with responsibilities at the paper but also more broadly within the union and as its representative.
No longer married during this time, Soler married Grace DuBreuil in 1981, herself an ardent activist and communist, particularly involved with labor, women workers, Union 1199, and the anti-apartheid protest movement. DuBreuil was central to Soler’s interest and activism against apartheid, and he brought these interests to the PSP, which garnered the Party and its mission additional global recognition. Soler helped to organize the 75th African National Congress, and along with other district union leaders also founded Latinos Against Apartheid in the early 1980s in New York, a broad based coalition of community, labor, and religious activists and organizations.
Soler continued his work as a labor organizer, photographer, and bi-lingual journalist, holding formal union staff positions at multiple unions, most notably CWA Local 1040, while also pursuing his labor interests academically, earning a Master of Arts in Labor Studies from Rutgers University in 1991. He taught as an instructor and lecturer for the Labor Education Department and Extension Program at Rutgers, for the Labor Studies Program at Cornell University, and took over as Director at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Labor Education Center in 1993, a post he held until his retirement in 2015. Soler taught academic courses on the impact and history of the labor movement, the role of Latinos and other minorities in the labor movement, labor films, and on other related topics. These positions also involved continued work and collaboration with union leaders and members, and the running of workshops on organizing, worker duties and rights, collective bargaining, fundraising, and professional skill development. Soler completed his own formal education in 2001, with a Doctor of Education (ABD) from the University of Massachusetts Boston.
While happy to state an opinion or take a stand alone, as he did in a critical letter to a museum director who Soler felt required correcting on Puerto Rican history, Soler’s efforts as an activist and organizer are at their heart about community, solidarity, and bringing people together for sharing knowledge and creating action. Discussing his life’s commitments, Soler says that he has always been, and will always be, “married to the struggle.” With over twenty years as Director at the UMass Dartmouth Labor Education Center, and twenty additional years as a political, labor, education, and social change activist, Soler’s impact on southeast New England, New York, and New Jersey communities is immeasurable, and continues to this day.
A tireless protester, organizer, writer, educator, colleague, and comrade, Soler has led and joined numerous others in working for both local and global equality, justice, and peace. His Latino and minority identity was influential in some of his concerns, particularly in labor and in the primary political pursuit of his life’s work, the continued fight for Puerto Rican independence. Soler can trace this fight back to his great-grandfather, who participated in the Intentona of Yauco in 1897, and joined Puerto Rican patriots in Cabo Rojo fighting against the US invasion of Puerto Rico in July 1898. A century later, many still see Puerto Rico as under US imperialism and control. As Soler wrote,
“On the verge of entering the 21st century, Puerto Rico has become the principal colony of a planet where colonialism has practically disappeared. This fact has become unsustainable… The decolonization of Puerto Rico, the oldest colony in the world, is definitely an item to be included in everyone’s agenda…” (“No to a False Plebiscite, Yes to the Decolonization of Puerto Rico,” 1992).
While officially retired in 2015, Soler continues his work as a social and labor activist, documentary photographer, and fighter for Puerto Rican self-determination.
Contents of Collection
The José A. Soler Papers chronical over forty years of a life-long activist’s interests and participation in left-wing political, labor, and social justice movements. There is a particular focus on topics relating to socialism and the pro-independence movement in Puerto Rico, anti-imperialist movements in South and Central America and Africa, and issues affecting Puerto Rican and Hispanic workers in the United States, New England, and the New York City area. Published and promotional materials such as periodicals, magazines, newsletters, and pamphlets make up the bulk of the collection, with extensive coverage of the concerns of the Puerto Rican Socialist Party (Partido Socialista Puertorriqueño, PSP), the Communist Party of the United States of America (CPUSA), as well as New Jersey chapters of the unions Communications Workers of America (CWA) and District 65, which eventually joined the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace, and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW).
The PSP materials, with strong coverage of the 1970s and 1980s, include several different Puerto Rican and United States’ based periodicals, newsletters, organizational papers, and meeting reports, and are particularly rich. They reflect the Marxist- Leninist ideology and educational efforts of the Party, and its shifting struggle for Puerto Rican independence and socialism, both locally and in its US based chapters, of which Soler was a leader in New York. These materials are predominantly in Spanish.
Numerous other organizations are represented, reflecting Soler’s depth and breadth of involvement around issues of civil rights, labor rights, social justice, and social change. Photographs, syllabi, limited correspondence and articles by Soler offer a more detailed look into his family life as well as his professional and personal work as an organizer, journalist, educator, and advisor.
The collection has been divided into four series, and arranged alphabetically within each series:
The PSP materials, with strong coverage of the 1970s and 1980s, include several different Puerto Rican and United States’ based periodicals, newsletters, organizational papers, and meeting reports, and are particularly rich. They reflect the Marxist- Leninist ideology and educational efforts of the Party, and its shifting struggle for Puerto Rican independence and socialism, both locally and in its US based chapters, of which Soler was a leader in New York. These materials are predominantly in Spanish.
Numerous other organizations are represented, reflecting Soler’s depth and breadth of involvement around issues of civil rights, labor rights, social justice, and social change. Photographs, syllabi, limited correspondence and articles by Soler offer a more detailed look into his family life as well as his professional and personal work as an organizer, journalist, educator, and advisor.
The collection has been divided into four series, and arranged alphabetically within each series:
- Series 1: Personal and Professional
- Series 2: Partido Socialista Puertorriqueño (PSP)
- Series 3: Activism
- Series 4: Photographs
All four series contain material in both English and Spanish.
Series descriptions
Collection inventory
Administrative information
Provenance
Acquired from José A. Soler, 2015-2016.
Separated Material
Books that came with the José A. Soler Papers were removed from the collection and will be cataloged separately. These books include:
- Allen, J. S. (2000). Organizing in the Depression South: A Communist’s Memoir [Special Issue]. Nature, Society, and Thought: A Journal of Dialectical and Historical Materialism, 13(1).
- Bradlee, B. (1964). That Special Grace (1st ed.). Philadelphia, PA: J. B. Lippincott Company.
- Cannon, T. (1972). Vietnam: A Thousand Years of Struggle. San Francisco, CA: Peoples Press.
- Center for Research on Criminal Justice. (1975). The Iron Fist and the Velvet Glove: An Analysis of the U.S. Police. Berkeley, CA: Center for Research on Criminal Justice.
- Debray, R. (1970). Strategy for Revolution: Essays on Latin America. Blackburn, R. (Ed.). New York, NY: Monthy Review Press.
- Dementyev, I. (1979). USA: Imperialists and Anti-Imperialists. Moscow, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics: Progress Publishers.
- Dreiser, T. (1961). Sister Carrie. New York, NY: Signet Classics.
- Dreiser, T. (1964). An American Tragedy. New York, NY: Signet Classics.
- Dreiser, T. (1965). The Titan. New York, NY: Signet Classics.
- Fast, H. (1945). Patrick Henrey and The Frigate’s Keel. New York, NY: Book Find Club.
- Fast, H. (1948). My Glorious Brothers. New York, NY: Jordan Publishing Co.
- Fast, H. (1949). Departure, and Other Stories. Boston, MA:Little, Brown and Company.
- Fast, H. (1954). Silas Timberman. New York, NY: Blue Heron Press, Inc. (Signed copy).
- Fast, H. (1956). The Story of Lola Gregg. New York, NY: Blue Heron Press, Inc.
- Fast, H. (1961). April Morning. New York, NY: Bantam Books.
- Fast, H. (1964). The American. New York, NY: Duell, Sloan and Pearce.
- Fast, H. (1966). Conceived in Liberty. New York, NY: Signet.
- Fast, H. (1966). Torquemada. Garden City, NY:Doubleday & Company, Inc.
- Fast, H. (1968). The Jews: Story of a People. New York, NY: Dell Publishing Co., Inc.
- Fast, H. (1972). Freedom Road. New York, NY: Bantam Books.
- Fast, H. (1972). The Hessian. New York, NY: Bantam Books.
- Fast, H. (1977). The Immigrants. New York, NY: Dell Publishing Co.. Inc.
- Fast, H. (1985). The Immigrant’s Daughter. Boston, MA:Houghton Mifflin Company.
- Fast, H. (1988). The Pledge. Boston, MA:Houghton Mifflin Company.
- Fast, H. (1990). Being Red. Boston, MA:Houghton Mifflin Company.
- GarcÃa, N. Puerto Rico y la Mineria. San Juan, Puerto Rico: Grupo de Evaluacion Borinquen, Ediciones Libreria Internacional.
- International Defence and Aid Fund. (1983). Apartheid: The Facts. London, England: International Defence and Aid Fund for Southern Africa.
- Lowe, J. (1961). Portrait: The Emergence of John F. Kennedy. New York, NY: Bramhall House.
- Marquit, E. (Ed.). (1996). Nature, Society, and Thought: A Journal of Dialectical and Historical Materialism, 9(1).
- Marquit, E. (Ed.). (1996). Religion and Freethought [Special Issue]. Nature, Society, and Thought: A Journal of Dialectical and Historical Materialism, 9(2).
- Marquit, E. (Ed.). (2005). Nature, Society, and Thought: A Journal of Dialectical and Historical Materialism, 18(3).
- Marquit, E. (Ed.). (2005). Nature, Society, and Thought: A Journal of Dialectical and Historical Materialism, 18(4).
- Morales, F. & Newton, E. (1975). Tupac Amaru y los Rebeldes de Peru – The Story of the Inca Revolt Against Spanish Rule in Peru. Albuquerque, NM: Chicano Communications Center.
- Mosley, W. (1995). RL’s Dream. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company.
- Osborn, C. (Ed.). (1968). I Have a Dream: The Story of Martin Luther King in Text and Pictures. New York, NY: Time-Life Books.
- Ponomarev. B. N. (1979). Marxism-Leninism: A Flourishing Science/A Reply to Critics. New York, NY: International Publishers.
- Salinger, P. & Vanocur, S. (Eds.). (1964). A Tribute to John F. Kennedy. Chicago, IL: Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc.
- Shirokov, Y. & Creighton, C. (Trans.). (1980). The International Working-Class Movement: Problems of History and Theory (Vol. 1).Moscow, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics:Progress Publishers.
- Sivachyov, N. & Yazkov, E.(1976). History of the USA since World War I. Moscow, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics: Progress Publishers.
- Tse-Tung, M. (1965). The Foolish Old Man Who Removed the Mountains. Peking, China: Foreign Languages Press.
- Tse-Tung, M. (1965). On Contradiction. Peking, China: Foreign Languages Press.
- Tse-Tung, M. (1965). On Practice. Peking, China: Foreign Languages Press. (2 copies)
- Tse-Tung, M. (1966). Acerca de la Practica. Peking, China: Foreign Languages Press.
- Tse-Tung, M. (1966). Serve the People. Peking, China: Foreign Languages Press.
- United Press International & American Heritage Magazine. (1964). Four Days: The Historical Record of the Death of President Kennedy. Rockville, MD: American Heritage Publishing Co., Inc.
Processing Information
Processed by Blake Spitz, February 2016.
Copyright and Use (More information
)
)
Cite as: José A. Soler Papers (MS 864). Special Collections and University Archives, University of Massachusetts Amherst Libraries.
Gift of Jose Soler, 2015, 2016