Robert Curvin (February 23, 1934 – September 30, 2015) was an advocate for

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.1967 Newark riots The 1967 Newark riots were an episode of violent, armed conflict in the streets of Newark, New Jersey, United States. Taking place over a four-day period (between July 12 and July 17, 1967), the Newark riots resulted in at least 26 deaths and ...

. He lived in the Vailsburg section of Newark and devoted much scholarly effort to the issue of urban poverty.

Early life and education

Curvin was born in

Belleville, New Jersey Belleville (French: "Belle ville" meaning "Beautiful city / town") is a Township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States Census, the township's population wa ...

and raised in the township's

Silver Lake Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...

section, where he graduated from Belleville High School in 1952 before enlisting in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

. He attended

Rutgers University Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was ...

, where he earned a bachelor's degree in 1960 and his MSW in 1967. He went on to receive a PhD in political science from

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

in 1975.

Activism

In 1960, Curvin helped found the Newark- Essex County chapter of the

Congress of Racial Equality The Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) is an African-American civil rights organization in the United States that played a pivotal role for African Americans in the civil rights movement. Founded in 1942, its stated mission is "to bring about ...

. During the Newark Riots, Curvin attempted to calm rioters. Said historian Clement Price, "“He displayed immense personal courage during the height of the riots by grasping a bullhorn, climbing atop a car and exhorting a restive crowd not to riot and instead stage a peaceful march on City Hall,” Curvin campaigned for Newark's first Black mayor Kenneth A. Gibson and was a trusted advisor to Gibson. Curvin was a founder of

New Community Corporation New Community Corporation (NCC) is a not-for-profit community development corporation based in Newark, New Jersey. NCC focuses on community organizing, provision of a variety of community-enhancing services, and resident participation in agency o ...

Later life

Curvin was on

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

editorial board from 1978 to 1984. He served as a dean of the Milano School of Management and Urban Policy at New School University and director of the Revson Foundation. He also was a Senior Policy Fellow at the

Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy The Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy of Rutgers University (The Bloustein School) serves as a center for the theory and practice of urban planning, public policy and public health/health administration scholarship. The sc ...

. From 1988 to 2012, Curvin headed the

Ford Foundation The Ford Foundation is an American private foundation with the stated goal of advancing human welfare. Created in 1936 by Edsel Ford and his father Henry Ford, it was originally funded by a US$25,000 gift from Edsel Ford. By 1947, after the death ...

. Curvin was a trustee of the

Fund for the City of New York New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, the Victoria Foundation, Beth Israel Hospital in Newark,

New Jersey Performing Arts Center The New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), in downtown Newark, New Jersey, United States, is one of the largest performing arts centers in the United States. Home to the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra (NJSO), more than nine million visitors ( ...

, Thirteen/ WNET and

. He received a 2015 Ryan Award for Commitment to NJPAC and Leadership in the City of Newark at NJPAC's 20th Annual Spotlight Gala and was a member of the Rutgers Hall of Distinguished Alumni. He spent much of his last years in academic work writing his book ''Inside Newark''. He died of multiple myeloma in 2015, at the age of 81.

Personal life

Curvin and his wife Patricia lived in the Vailsburg section of Newark. They had a son and a daughter: Frank and Nicole. Robert shares a daughter, Melanie Adams with the late Nannette Adams.

Bibliography

* ''The Persistent Minority the Black Political Experience in Newark'' (Phd Dissertation, Princeton University) * ''Black Ghetto Politics in Newark after World War II'', in Schwartz and Prosser eds., "Cities of the Garden State" (Kendall-Hunt Publ., 1977) * ''Blackout Looting: New York City, July 13, 1977'' (Gardner Press, 1979) * ''Inside Newark: Decline, Rebellion, and the Search for Transformation'' (Rutgers University Press, 2014)

References

1934 births 2015 deaths Belleville High School (New Jersey) alumni People from Belleville, New Jersey People from Newark, New Jersey Deaths from multiple myeloma Poverty in the United States Charles H. Revson Foundation Princeton University alumni Rutgers University alumni {{NewJersey-stub