Nathan Weinstein

1924 - 2014

Nathan Weinstein was born in Brooklyn in 1924. His mother was a Russian-Jewish immigrant, his father an American-born son of Russian-Jewish immigrants. He married Sylvia Mae Profitt in 1944 and joined the Socialist Workers Party in 1945. He served as a Merchant seaman during World War II from 1943-1945. He first learned about socialism in 1945 aboard a Merchant ship.

For the rest of his life he devoted himself to his family and to the socialist cause. He participated in the civil rights movement, especially defending Robert Williams and Malcolm X, and was a supporter in the U.S. of the Cuban Revolution. He was active in the Painters Union both in New York and in San Francisco and participated in many labor struggles throughout his life. Nat was an editor of Socialist Viewpoint magazine, where many of his writings were published, including analyses of the Cuban Revolution, the fall of the Soviet Union, the nature of the Chinese state and the power of the united front of workers. Nat was also a decorative painter and an artist. Besides baseball, pool and pinochle, he loved a good political debate.

Nat is survived by his daughters Bonnie and Debbie Weinstein, Bonnie's husband, Jack Biancalana, her son Kevin Sheppard and his wife Maria Sheppard, her son John A. Gould, and Debbie's son, Reshad Karboau. To his whole family and his many friends and comrades Nat Weinstein represented the best tradition of the militant, class-conscious socialist worker.

A celebration of Nat's life is being organized and will be announced shortly. Messages and comments can be sent to Bonnie Weinstein at giobon@comcast.net, Carole Seligman at caroleseligman@sbcglobal.net, or call Socialist Viewpoint at (415) 824-8730 for more information.