Morris "Moe" Foner (1916 – January 10, 2002) was a labor leader active in Union 1199, the New York Health and Human Service Union.Steven Greenhouse
"Moe Foner, Labor Official and Movement's Unofficial Cultural Impresario, Dies at 86,"
''New York Times,'' January 11, 2002, pg. C13.

Biography

Early years

Foner was born and raised in the Williamsburg neighborhood of

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

. His parents were Polish Jews who had four sons, all of whom became active in leftist politics. His brothers

Philip Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who popularize ...

and

Jack Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name, ...

were professional historians (Jack was also the father of historian

Eric Foner Eric Foner (; born February 7, 1943) is an American historian. He writes extensively on American political history, the history of freedom, the early history of the Republican Party, African-American biography, the American Civil War, Reconstru ...

Henry Foner Henry Joseph Foner (March 23, 1919 – January 11, 2017) was a 20th-century Jewish-American social activist and president for more than two decades of the Joint Board, Fur, Leather and Machine Workers Union (FLM). He and his three older broth ...

led the Furriers' Union.

Union career

Foner started out as a leader in Department Store Local 1250, then moved on to Union 1199, where he became the director of education and culture. While there, he founded Bread and Roses, a cultural program for union members funded by the NEA. Foner wrote the foreword to '' Women of Hope: African Americans Who Made A Difference'', a children's book by Joyce Hansen. The book featured images from a Bread and Roses poster series which aimed to "honor courageous, creative women of color whose persistence and vision gave society hopefulness and inspiration."

Death and legacy

Foner died on January 10, 2002. His daughter

Nancy Foner Nancy Foner is an American sociologist, a Distinguished Professor of Sociology at Hunter College, City University of New York, and a published author. Foner is also a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She has also held the pr ...

is a sociologist.

Footnotes

External links

Notable New Yorkers - Moe Foner
Biography, photographs, and the audio and transcript of Moe Foner's oral history from the Notable New Yorkers collection of the Oral History Research Office at Columbia University. {{DEFAULTSORT:Foner, Moe Jewish American trade unionists Activists from New York City American people of Polish-Jewish descent Jewish socialists 1916 births 2002 deaths People from Williamsburg, Brooklyn