Jerome Segal

Last updated
Jerome Segal
Jerome Segal(Cropped).jpg
Born (1943-11-25) November 25, 1943 (age 80)
New York City, U.S.
Education City College of New York (BA)
University of Michigan (MA, PhD)
University of Minnesota (MPA)
Political party Democratic (before 2018, 2021–present)
Bread and Roses (2018–2021)

Jerome Michael Segal (born November 25, 1943) is an American philosopher, political activist, and perennial candidate [1] [2] who resides in Silver Spring, Maryland. He was the founder of the socialist, progressive, and somewhat libertarian [3] Bread and Roses Party, which achieved ballot access in Maryland in January 2019, [4] and which Segal ran from 2018 to 2021.

Contents

Segal is a research scholar at the University of Maryland, College Park, and the president of the Jewish Peace Lobby. [5] He was a candidate in the Democratic Party primary in the 2018 United States Senate election in Maryland. [6] He unsuccessfully ran in the 2020 United States presidential election [7] and the 2022 Maryland gubernatorial election.

Early life and education

Segal was born and raised in The Bronx. His father, a socialist and member of the Jewish Labor Bund, was born in Poland and immigrated to the United States, where he found employment as a factory worker in the garment industry. [8] After graduating from the Bronx High School of Science, Segal went to City College of New York, where he received honors in philosophy and economics, and was awarded the Brittain Prize in Moral Philosophy. [9] Segal went on to receive a PhD from the University of Michigan, and taught in the philosophy department of the University of Pennsylvania. He later received an MPA from the Hubert Humphrey School of the University of Minnesota. [10]

Career

After receiving his MPA from the University of Minnesota, Segal moved to Washington, D.C. in 1974 to work as an aide to Congressman Donald M. Fraser and administrator of the House Budget Committee's task force on distributive impacts of economic policy. In 1979, he became Coordinator for the Near East in the policy bureau of the US Agency for International Development and, later, Senior Advisor for Agency Planning. After leaving government, he joined the Institute for Philosophy and Public Policy at the University of Maryland as Senior Research Scholar. [11]

Segal has been a leader of the American Jewish peace movement, starting in 1982 with Washington Area Jews for Israeli-Palestinian Peace (WAJIPP), a group that opposed the Israeli invasion of Lebanon. In 1987, he traveled to Tunis to meet Yasser Arafat and leaders of the Palestine Liberation Organization. No American Jewish delegation had ever met with the PLO, which the U.S. government officially considered a terrorist organization at the time. [12] In August 1988, Israel raided the offices of Faisal al-Husseini, a Palestinian militant, and discovered a plan, based in part on earlier writings by Segal, for a ''declaration of Palestinian independence." [13] That plan, along with other writings by Segal in Palestinian papers such as Al-Quds, were a catalyst for the Palestinian Declaration of Independence later that year and the Palestinian peace initiative in which Israel's right to exist was recognized. [14] [15]

In May 1989, Segal founded the Jewish Peace Lobby, which he envisioned as acting as a counterweight to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). [16] [17] The Peace Lobby remains active today, with about 5,000 members (including 400 rabbis). [18]

As a candidate

Jerome Segal's performance by county in the state of Maryland in the 2020 presidential election.
Legend:

.mw-parser-output .legend{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .legend-color{display:inline-block;min-width:1.25em;height:1.25em;line-height:1.25;margin:1px 0;text-align:center;border:1px solid black;background-color:transparent;color:black}.mw-parser-output .legend-text{}
0.0-0.1%

0.1-0.2%

0.2-0.3%

>0.3% 2020 United States presidential election in Maryland - Percentage of votes cast for Jerome Segal by county.svg
Jerome Segal's performance by county in the state of Maryland in the 2020 presidential election.
Legend:
  0.0-0.1%
  0.1-0.2%
  0.2-0.3%
  >0.3%

Segal ran for a seat in the US Senate against incumbent Senator Ben Cardin in the 2018 midterm elections. After losing in the Democratic primary to Cardin, he attempted to be included in the general election under the Bread and Roses party, but was prohibited due to the "sore loser" statute of Maryland state law, which prohibits candidates from running in the general election after losing a primary.

Bread and Roses Party

After the 2018 election, Segal founded a new socialist political party called "Bread and Roses", after submitted a petition with more than 15,000 signatures to the Maryland Board of Elections. The party is named after a slogan used by striking workers during the 1912 Lawrence textile strike. [19]

The Board certified the Bread and Roses party in January 2019, allowing its candidates to run for office in Maryland in the 2020 election. [20]

In August 2019, Segal announced a run in the 2020 United States presidential election under the Bread and Roses party banner. He said that he would not compete in swing states to avoid taking votes from a Democratic candidate running against Donald Trump. [7]

The Bread and Roses party identified itself as "socialistic" in nature, distinguishing itself from "traditional socialism". The party advocated socialist ideals such as "From each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs" while also advocating democratic principles of limited government, individual liberty and rule of law. Their website also advertised ideals like "plain living, high thinking and a Utopian future". [21] [22]

Disbanding

The logo of Segal's 2024 presidential campaign JS4P - Logo - Plain.png
The logo of Segal's 2024 presidential campaign

In December 2021, Segal disbanded the Bread and Roses party to seek the Democratic nomination for the 2022 Maryland gubernatorial election. [23] His running mate was Justin Dispenza, a member of the town council of Galena, Maryland. [24] After conceding in the Democratic primary on July 20, 2022, Segal started a campaign for 2024 United States presidential election as a Democrat. [25] On May 1, 2023, after U.S. Senator Ben Cardin announced that he would not run for re-election in 2024, Segal ended his presidential campaign and instead started a campaign to succeed Cardin. [26] Segal never filed to run for the U.S. Senate with the Maryland State Board of Elections and did not appear on the ballot. [27]

Books

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">AIPAC</span> Pro-Israel lobby group in the United States

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee is a pro-Israel lobbying group that advocates its policies to the legislative and executive branches of the United States. One of several pro-Israel lobbying organizations in the country, it has been called one of the most powerful lobbying groups.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ben Cardin</span> American lawyer and politician (born 1943)

Benjamin Louis Cardin is an American lawyer and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Maryland, a seat he has held since 2007. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the U.S. representative for Maryland's 3rd congressional district from 1987 to 2007. Cardin served in the Maryland House of Delegates from 1967 to 1987 and as its speaker from 1979 to 1987. Cardin has never lost an election in his entire political career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Van Hollen</span> American lawyer and politician (born 1959)

Christopher Van Hollen Jr. is an American attorney and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Maryland since 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Van Hollen served as the U.S. representative for Maryland's 8th congressional district from 2003 to 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kevin Zeese</span> American activist

Kevin Bruce Zeese was an American lawyer, U.S. Senate candidate and political activist. He worked to end the war on drugs and mass incarceration, and was instrumental in organizing the 2011 Occupy encampment in Washington, D.C. at Freedom Plaza and occupying the Venezuelan Embassy in the District of Columbia. Zeese co-founded the news site PopularResistance.org in 2011 with his partner, Margeret Flowers. Zeese died of a heart attack on September 6, 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2006 United States Senate election in Maryland</span>

The 2006 United States Senate election in Maryland was held Tuesday, November 7, 2006. Incumbent Democrat Paul Sarbanes, Maryland's longest-serving United States senator, decided to retire instead of seeking a sixth term. Democratic nominee Ben Cardin, a U.S. representative, won the open seat, defeating Republican lieutenant governor Michael Steele.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maryland Democratic Party</span> Political party in the U.S. state of Maryland

The Maryland Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the state of Maryland, headquartered in Annapolis. The current acting state party chair is Kenneth Ulman. It is currently the dominant party in the state, controlling all but one of Maryland's eight U.S. House seats, both U.S. Senate seats, all statewide executive offices and supermajorities in both houses of the state legislature.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Jewish Democratic Council</span> Dissolved political lobbying organization

The National Jewish Democratic Council (NJDC) was a political lobbying organization that advocated within the Democratic Party for viewpoints aligned with the American Jewish community and in support of the state of Israel, and within the political process generally, between 1990 and about 2016.

J Street is a nonprofit liberal Zionist advocacy group based in the United States whose stated aim is to promote American leadership to end the Arab–Israeli and Israeli–Palestinian conflicts peacefully and diplomatically. J Street was incorporated on November 29, 2007.

In United States politics, the trends of Jews have changed political positions multiple times. Many early American German-Jewish immigrants to the United States tended to be politically conservative, but the wave of Eastern European Jews, starting in the early 1880s, were generally more liberal or left-wing, and eventually became the political majority. Many of the latter moved to America having had experience in the socialist, anarchist, and communist movements as well as the Labor Bund emanating from Eastern Europe. Many Jews rose to leadership positions in the early 20th century American labor movement, and founded unions that played a major role in left-wing politics and, after 1936, inside the Democratic Party politics. For most of the 20th century since 1936, the vast majority of Jews in the United States have been aligned with the Democratic Party. During the 20th and 21st centuries, the Republican Party has launched initiatives to persuade American Jews to support their political policies, with relatively little success.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012 United States Senate election in Maryland</span>

The 2012 United States Senate election in Maryland took place on November 6, 2012, concurrently with the 2012 U.S. presidential election as well as other elections to the United States Senate, House of Representatives, and various state and local elections. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Ben Cardin won re-election to a second term, defeating Republican nominee Dan Bongino and independent Rob Sobhani.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Democratic Socialists of America</span> American political organization

The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is a big tent, democratic socialist political organization in the United States. After the Socialist Party of America (SPA) transformed into Social Democrats, USA, Michael Harrington formed the Democratic Socialist Organizing Committee (DSOC). The DSOC later merged with the New American Movement (NAM) to form the DSA. The organization is headquartered in New York City and has about 80,000 members. It leads organizing and protest campaigns, and has members in the House of Representatives, state legislatures, and other local offices.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jewish left</span> Movement of activists whose Judaism informs their support left-wing or liberal causes

The Jewish left consists of Jews who identify with, or support, left-wing or left-liberal causes, consciously as Jews, either as individuals or through organizations. There is no one organization or movement which constitutes the Jewish left, however. Jews have been major forces in the history of the labor movement, the settlement house movement, the women's rights movement, anti-racist and anti-colonialist work, and anti-fascist and anti-capitalist organizations of many forms in Europe, the United States, Australia, Algeria, Iraq, Ethiopia, South Africa, and modern-day Israel. Jews have a history of involvement in anarchism, socialism, Marxism, and Western liberalism. Although the expression "on the left" covers a range of politics, many well-known figures "on the left" have been of Jews who were born into Jewish families and have various degrees of connection to Jewish communities, Jewish culture, Jewish tradition, or the Jewish religion in its many variants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 United States Senate election in Maryland</span>

The 2018 United States Senate election in Maryland took place on November 6, 2018, in order to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Maryland. It was held concurrently with other elections to the United States Senate, elections to the United States House of Representatives, and various state and local elections. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Ben Cardin was re-elected to a third and ultimately final term by a landslide margin of almost 35 points, the largest margin in any election for this seat since Maryland began holding direct elections for Senate in 1913.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Trone</span> American businessman and politician (born 1955)

David John Trone is an American politician and alcoholic beverage magnate serving as the U.S. representative from Maryland's 6th congressional district since 2019. The district includes most of the western third of the state, but the bulk of its population is in the outer northern suburbs of Washington, D.C. Trone founded and co-owns Total Wine & More with his brother, Robert L. Trone, and served as the company's president until December 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jewish Democratic Council of America</span> U.S. political nonprofit organization

The Jewish Democratic Council of America (JDCA), also known as "Jewish Dems", is an organization that defines itself as "the voice for Jewish Democrats and socially progressive, pro-Israel, and Jewish values". It was announced in August 2017, and officially launched in November 2017. JDCA was incorporated in Washington, D.C., in June 2017. JDCA has 13 chapters and affiliates across the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Democratic Majority for Israel</span> Lobbying group advocating pro-Israel policies in the United States

Democratic Majority for Israel (DMFI) is an American advocacy group that supports pro-Israel policies within the United States Democratic Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2024 United States Senate election in Maryland</span>

The 2024 United States Senate election in Maryland will be held on November 5, 2024, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the state of Maryland. Democratic Prince George's County executive Angela Alsobrooks and Republican former governor Larry Hogan are seeking their first term in office. The winner will succeed Democratic incumbent Ben Cardin, who is not seeking re-election to a fourth term.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 Maryland gubernatorial election</span>

The 2022 Maryland gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 2022, to elect the next governor of Maryland. Incumbent governor Larry Hogan was term-limited and could not seek a third consecutive term. This was the first gubernatorial election where both parties' nominees for Lieutenant Governor were women.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2024 United States House of Representatives elections in Maryland</span>

The 2024 United States House of Representatives elections in Maryland will be held on November 5, 2024, to elect the eight U.S. representatives from the state of Maryland, one from each of the state's eight congressional districts. The elections will coincide with the 2024 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate, and various state and local elections. The Democratic and Republican primary elections were held on May 14, 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Vogel (politician)</span> American politician (born 1997)

Joseph Vogel is an Uruguay-born American politician who has served as a member of the Maryland House of Delegates from District 17 since 2023. A member of the Democratic Party, his district includes the Montgomery County cities of Gaithersburg and Rockville; he represents the district alongside fellow Democratic delegates Julie Palakovich Carr and Ryan Spiegel.

References

  1. Moore, Jack (July 20, 2022). "Md. gov results: Trump-backed Cox wins GOP race for governor, AP projects; Wes Moore leads Dems". WTOP-FM. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
  2. Hogan, Jack (May 9, 2023). "Alsobrooks joins field of Md. Democrats seeking U.S. Senate seat in 2024". The Daily Record. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
  3. "Bread and Roses : A Humanist Organization with a Strong Utopian and International Orientation, One in Pursuit of a New American Dream and a World of Peace and Justice". Bread and Roses. Archived from the original on 2024-10-07. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
  4. "Bread and Roses Party / Bread & Roses Party". Maryland State Archives. March 11, 2022. Archived from the original on 2024-04-22. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
  5. "Search – The Washington Post – Jerome M. Segal". Washington Post. Retrieved 2017-12-13.
  6. Portnoy, Jenna (January 17, 2018). "How a defiant Chelsea Manning could upend the race for U.S. Senate in Maryland". Washington Post. Retrieved January 24, 2018.
  7. 1 2 Chason, Rachel (28 August 2019). "Jerome Segal, of Maryland socialist Bread and Roses party, to run for president". Washington Post. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
  8. Pear, Robert (1988-08-24). "Washington Talk: Foreign Affairs; Jewish Father for Palestinian State?". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2018-01-15.
  9. "Graduation Is Set at City College". The New York Times. 1964-06-17. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2018-01-15.
  10. Segal, Jerome M. (2009). Agency, Illusion, and Well-being: Essays in Moral Psychology and Philosophical Economics. Lexington Books. ISBN   9780739129692.
  11. Andrews, Cecile; Urbanska, Wanda (2009-09-01). Less is More: Embracing Simplicity for a Healthy Planet, a Caring Economy and Lasting Happiness. New Society Publishers. ISBN   9781550924312.
  12. "Jerome Segal: Visionary who led Congress to establish $10 Million Annual Peace Fund". Jewschool. 2015-02-26. Retrieved 2018-01-16.
  13. Pear, Robert (1988-08-24). "WASHINGTON TALK: FOREIGN AFFAIRS; Jewish Father for Palestinian State?". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2018-01-16.
  14. "Middle East Dialogue 2013 Conference Presenters – About The Authors" (PDF). professorsheehan.files.wordpress.com. Retrieved 2018-01-16.
  15. "Nonfiction Book Review: Creating the Palestinian State: A Strategy for Peace by Jerome M. Segal, Author Lawrence Hill Books $9.95 (177p) ISBN 978-1-55652-055-6". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved 2018-01-16.
  16. "Liberal U.S. Jews Lobby for Israel-PLO Talks". tribunedigital-sunsentinel. Archived from the original on 2018-01-23. Retrieved 2018-01-16.
  17. Adler, Cyrus; Szold, Henrietta (1995). American Jewish Year Book. VNR AG. ISBN   9780874951080.
  18. "The Jewish Peace Lobby". www.jewishpeacelobby.org. Retrieved 2018-01-16.
  19. "Ex-US Senate candidate asks Maryland to sanction a socialist party". Herald-Mail Media. Retrieved 2018-08-27.
  20. "Bread and Roses socialist party certified in Maryland". Washington Post. Retrieved 2019-03-19.
  21. "Bread and Roses". Bread and Roses. Retrieved 2019-03-19.
  22. Tkacik, Christina. "Bread and Roses Party, a self-identified socialist group, is certified in Maryland". baltimoresun.com. Archived from the original on 2019-02-04. Retrieved 2019-03-19.
  23. Kurtz, Josh (December 16, 2021). "Bread and Roses Party Marches Into the Sunset; Founder Runs for Governor as a Dem". Maryland Matters . Archived from the original on December 16, 2021. Retrieved December 16, 2021.
  24. DePuyt, Bruce; Kurtz, Josh (February 10, 2022). "Political Notes: Elrich's Endorsements, Pippy's Plans, Segal's LG, and CD-4 News". Maryland Matters . Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  25. Cohn, Meredith (July 20, 2022). "Some concede, others watch and wait in Maryland Democratic primary race for governor". The Baltimore Sun . Retrieved July 20, 2022.
  26. Kurtz, Josh (May 1, 2023). "Tributes pour in for Cardin, whose seat becomes the main prize of 2024 in Md". Maryland Matters . Retrieved May 1, 2023.
  27. "2024 Candidate Listing". elections.maryland.gov. Maryland State Board of Elections. Retrieved February 10, 2024.
  28. Segal, Jerome M. (1989). Creating the Palestinian state : a strategy for peace (1st ed.). Chicago, Ill.: Lawrence Hill Books. ISBN   9781556520556. OCLC   18779422.
  29. Segal, Jerome M. (1991). Agency and alienation : a theory of human presence. Savage, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN   9780847676286. OCLC   23356376.
  30. Segal, Jerome M. (1996). Agency and alienation : a theory of human presence (1st paperback ed.). Lanham, Maryland.: Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN   0847682072. OCLC   35295628.
  31. Segal, Jerome M. (2003). Graceful simplicity : the philosophy and politics of the alternative American dream (Paperback ed.). Berkeley, California.: University of California Press. ISBN   0520236009. OCLC   49531032.
  32. Segal, Jerome M. (2007). Joseph's bones : understanding the struggle between God and mankind in the Bible . New York: Riverhead Books. ISBN   978-1594489396. OCLC   76261878.
  33. Segal, Jerome M. (2009). Agency, illusion, and well-being : essays in moral psychology and philosophical economics. Lanham, Maryland: Lexington Books. ISBN   978-0739129692. OCLC   243674284.
  34. Segal, Jerome M. (2023). 85 Rochdale Road. Author's Republic. ISBN   9798823466011.