Murray Lerner Papers, 1931–1979

The collection comprises material related to Murray (also known as Myer, Meyer, Mayer, Emil, and Munya) P. Lerner, a furrier and activist who lived in Co-op City and was a member of the steering committee during the massive 13-month long rent strike in 1975. Murray Lerner was born in 1904 in Tsarist Russia and graduated with honors from a Gymnasia there—no easy task for a Jew during the reign of Tsar Nicholas II. Murray eventually travelled to Paris, where he graduated as an attorney from the University of Paris. During the Great Depression, Murray came to the U.S. through Quebec. Unable to acquire certification to practice law in the U.S. and already married to his wife Rose, Murray sought employment where he could find it and became a furrier in 1931 (at the time living at 3317 Mermaid Ave. in Brooklyn, though he and Rose soon moved up to The Bronx). He was actively involved in the International Fur Workers Union/I.F.L.W.U., holding leadership positions therein. He was also a member of the Amalgamated Meat Cutters and Butcher Workmen of North America Union starting in 1955, when I.F.L.W.U. merged with this union. Murray Lerner was a steadfast advocate for workers’ democratic control over the union, opposing both bosses and union bureaucrats when necessary.

Murray and Rose Lerner were among the first to move into Co-op City in 1968. Previously, they had lived for decades at 1180 Lebanon St., in the West Farms area, and for a very short period of time at 1219 Adee Ave., near Allerton. While living at Co-op City, aside from organizing and actively agitating in favor of the rent strike, Murray Lerner was involved in various other community endeavors, including the Casals Senior Group, the Co-op City Handicapped Adults Association, the Jewish Association for Services for the Ages (J.A.S.A.), the Co-op City Senior Coordinating Council, and local Democratic Party clubs. After the rent strike ended, as concession to the strikers, Murray was one of the residents appointed to the new Board of Directors of the Riverbay Management Company and worked in that capacity as an unwavering advocate for the interests of the residents of Co-op City.

Throughout his life, Murray was an untiring activist for social justice, and during the last part of his life especially his attention was focused on bettering the situation for senior citizens—through rent control, increased transportation and medical services, improved social and cultural activities, and more. In addition to being an eloquent speaker and formidable editorialist, Murray Lerner was also a poet. Murray died in September 1978, leaving behind his wife, children, and grandchildren. Soon thereafter, an auditorium at Co-op City was re-named in his honor, the Murray Lerner Auditorium.

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