Paul Johansen Geleff (January 6, 1842 – 1928) was a

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...

organizer.
Dansk biografisk Lexikon / V. Bind. Faaborg - Gersdorff / 588
' He was one of the founders of the socialist movement in Denmark. Geleff completed his education as school teacher in 1864, and went on to work as a teacher and publisher. In 1867 he issued the publication ''Hejmdal''. He was sentenced to pay a fine after having insulted the

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

n state in one of his articles. In 1871 he came into contact with H. F. V. Brix, and through Brix he became acquainted to

Louis Pio Louis Albert François Pio (1841–1894) was one of the principal founders of the organized worker's movement in Denmark, and the principal founder of the Danish Social Democratic Party. Early life Pio was born 14 December 1841 in Roskilde, ...

. The three began organizing a socialist movement. The trio founded the publication ''Socialisten'' ('The Socialist') in July 1871. In October the same year they founded a Danish branch of the

First International The International Workingmen's Association (IWA), often called the First International (1864–1876), was an international organisation which aimed at uniting a variety of different left-wing socialist, communist and anarchist groups and trad ...

.Paterson, William E., and Alastair H. Thomas.
Social Democratic Parties in Western Europe
'. London: Croom Helm, 1978. p. 235 The organization supported a bricklayers strike and had called for a meeting to mobilize support. In response, the authorities banned the organization and all its meetings. All three were arrested in the summer of 1872. Geleff was sentenced to three years forced labour. Geleff had also been accused of fraud, but after re-paying the amount he was accused of having embezzled those charges were dropped. Geleff wrote a book about his prison ordeals, ''Under Laas og Lukke'' ("Under lock and key") was published in 1876. After his release from jail, he and Pio again begun organizing socialist activities. In 1876 he was one of the founders of the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties Fo ...

. In March 1877 Geleff and Pio emigrated to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, with financial assistance from the Danish police. Their intention was to set up a colony in America. After settling down in America, Geleff and Pio broke their contacts. Geleff wrote a short publication about his trans-Atlantic travel and split with Pio, ''Den rene, skære Sandhed om Louis Pio og mig selv'' ("The pure truth about Louis Pio and myself") published in 1877.
Dansk biografisk Lexikon / V. Bind. Faaborg - Gersdorff / 589
' Geleff occasionally wrote articles for ''

Den Danske Pioneer ''Den Danske Pioneer'' (The Danish Pioneer) is the oldest Danish-language newspaper published in the United States. ''Den Danske Pioneer'' is one of two remaining Danish-language newspapers in the United States. The other is '' Bien'' (Danish for ...

'', published from Omaha in

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...

. Geleff played a crucial role in formulating the radical agenda of the newspaper. Geleff returned to Denmark in 1920, and lived as a pensioner with support from the Social Democratic Party.
Geleff, Paul
' Geleff died in 1928.
Karl Marx / Friedrich Engels: Werke, Artikel, Entwrfe, Mai 1875 bis Mai 1883
'. p. 1387 He was buried on Capri.Matvejević, Predrag, and Michael Henry Heim.
Mediterranean: A Cultural Landscape
'. Berkeley .a. Univ. of California Press, 1999. p. 216

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Geleff, Paul Johansen Danish socialists 1842 births 1928 deaths Danish schoolteachers American people of Danish descent Members of the International Workingmen's Association History of Omaha, Nebraska