Alexander Berkman

During his stay in New York, he had a romantic affair with Emma Goldman, a Russian immigrant. Later, he had an affair with Becky Edelsohn, a fifteen-year-old anarchist.

He suffered from a prostate condition that did not improve even after two operations. He shot himself with a handgun due to his inability to endure the physical pain of his ailment.

Born as Ovsei Osipovich Berkman in the city of Vilnius which was a part of the Russian Empire at that time, he was the youngest of the four children of his Jewish parents.

He received classical education at the Gymnasium. During his youth, the growing radicalism which became popular among workers in the Russian capital influenced him much.

He lost his father when he was 15 years of age. In the next year, his mother passed away. In the month of February, 1888, he left for the United States. After reaching New York City, he got involved in anarchist activities.

He joined Jewish anarchist group, Pioneers of Liberty that used to campaign for the freedom of the convicted persons of the 1886 Haymarket bombing. At that time, he became acquainted with Johann Most, a famous anarchist in the US.

He worked as a typesetter for Most’s newspaper ‘Feiheit”. Later, when his relationship with Most broke, he became associated with another publication titled “Die Autonomie”.

He began his political action as an anarchist through involvement in the Homestead Strike. He planned to assassinate Frick Berkman, the manager of a steel plant, for his role in breaking the picket lines of its workers’ union. He bought a handgun and a decent suit from Pittsburg and shot Frick three times on 23rd July, 1892. As a result of this, he was convicted of attempted murder and given a 22 year prison sentence.

After serving 14 years of his sentence in prison, he was released in 1906. Later, he went to New York after hearing about the arrest of several anarchists at a meeting concerning Leon Czolgosz, the assassin of the U.S. President William McKinley.

From 1910 to 1911, he remained busy in establishing the Ferrer Center in New York. He also worked as its teacher. This center was named after Spanish anarchist Francisco Ferrerr and it aimed to encourage independent thinking among its students. It also worked as a community center for adults.

His book “Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist” was published in 1912. This book bears a vivid account of his experience in prison in Pittsburg from 1892 to 1906. This book later became a classic in autobiographical literature.