Paul Buhle Papers
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Abstract
Paul Buhle is a scholar of radicalism in the United States and the Caribbean, with particular emphasis on its cultural manifestations, and of the Immigrant Left. This collection documents his political and intellectual life, including his interest and involvement in the antiwar movement, the activism of the New Left, the "radical history" movement of the 1970s, and efforts to create a "radical humor movement." Materials include correspondence, published and unpublished writings, Buhle's collection of satirical and other humor publications, and research files on radical immigrant communities and Afro-Trinidadian historian and social theorist CLR James.
Biographical Note
Paul Buhle (1944- ) is a scholar of radicalism in the United States and the Caribbean, with particular emphasis on its cultural manifestations, and of the Immigrant Left. Buhle was born in Urbana, Illinois, attended the University of Illinois (B.A., 1966), the University of Connecticut (M.A., 1967), and the University of Wisconsin - Madison (Ph.D., 1975). Buhle taught at the Cambridge-Godard School (1971–1973), the Rhode Island School of Design, and Brown University (1995-), where he is currently Faculty Emeritus.
Buhle was an active participant in the New Left of the 1960s and 1970s. He was a spokesperson for the University of Illinois' chapter of Students for a Democratic Society's (SDS) antiwar and civil rights activities. Buhle was the founding editor, along with Mary Jo Buhle, of the journal Radical America (1967–1999), which began as an unofficial organ of SDS and focused on issues such as civil rights, women's liberation, working class radicalism, and the anti-war movement. During the 1970s the journal began to shift its focus toward the issues and priorities of the New Left, as opposed to the more traditional values of the "Old Left." Buhle also founded Cultural Correspondence (1977–1983), a popular culture studies journal. For a brief period Buhle was a member of the Socialist Labor Party. In 2006 and 2007, he became one of the founding figures of the new Students for a Democratic Society, and more recently a leader of the Movement for a Democratic Society.
Buhle is the author or editor of numerous books, including Students for a Democratic Society: A Graphic History (2008); Wobblies! A Graphic History of Industrial Workers of the World (2005); Radical Hollywood: The Untold Story Behind America's Favorite Movies (2002); Images of American Radicalism (1998); The Immigrant Left in the United States (1996); Encyclopedia of the American Left (1990); Marxism in the United States: Remapping the History of the American Left (1987); C.L.R. James, His Life and Work (1986); and Labor's Joke Book (1985). Buhle was also one of the organizers of and chief contributors to the Oral History of the American Left (1984-), a project of the Tamiment Library at NYU. He co-founded the Rhode Island Labor History Society and produced Vanishing Road Island and Underground Rhode Island.
Arrangement
The collection is organized into four series, two of which have been further arranged in subseries. The series and subseries arrangement of the materials is as follows:
Missing Title
- Series 1, Correspondence, 1965-1993
- Series 2, Research Files, 1911-1992
- Subseries 1, Immigrant Left Files, 1911-1989
- Subseries 2, CLR James Files, 1939-1992
- Series 3, Graphic Materials, 1884-2000
- Series 4, Writings, 1964-1992
- Subseries 1, Unpublished Writings, 1964-1992
- Subseries 2, Published Writings, 1966-1991
Scope and Content Note
This collection documents the political and intellectual life of Paul Buhle, including his interest and involvement in the antiwar movement, the activism of the New Left, the "radical history" movement of the 1970s, and efforts to create a "radical humor movement." Materials in this collection also document Buhle's research on radical immigrant communities, his research on Afro-Trinidadian historian and social theorist CLR James, and the founding and activities of his journals, Radical America and Cultural Correspondence. The collection also contains Buhle's writings, including journalism for many leftist publications, numerous book reviews, unrealized essay drafts, and undergraduate and graduate school papers.
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Conditions Governing Access
Materials are open without restrictions.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright (and related rights to publicity and privacy) to materials in this collection created by Paul Buhle was not transferred to New York University. Permission to use materials must be secured from the copyright holder.
Preferred Citation
Published citations should take the following form:
Identification of item, date; Paul Buhle Papers; TAM 171; box number; folder number;
Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
Elmer Holmes Bobst Library
70 Washington Square South
New York, NY 10012, New York University Libraries.
Location of Materials
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Materials were donated by Paul Buhle in circa 1986. The accession number associated with this gift is 1995.010.
About this Guide
Processing Information Note
Materials were places in new acid-free folders and boxes. Original order of series and subseries was maintained as much as possible. Folder titles and dates have been applied by the archivist. At one point the materials had been divided into the Paul Buhle Papers and the Social Humor Collection; these were combined back into one collection based on the material's content and nature of the original donation.
