Niebyl-Proctor Marxist Library
Karl Niebyl was a professor of economics who escaped from Nazi Germany and taught for the rest of his life in various North American universities. His last post was at San Jose State.
Professor Niebyl died on April 4th, 1985, leaving his library to be made available to the public. He wanted this library to be named after his wife, Elizabeth Hale Niebyl, who was a leading figure in public housing in the days of the New Deal.
The Niebyl collection was stored for two years, until we found a home for it in Berkeley’s historic Finnish Hall. We moved in on January 20th, 1987 with 253 cartons of books.
Shortly, thereafter we inherited the books and papers of Roscoe Proctor, teacher, labor organizer, African-American activist. Hence the name: NIEBYL-PROCTOR LIBRARY.
In 1996 we moved into our own building at 6501 Telegraph Ave, in Oakland California.,
Our holdings consist of about 15,000 books, and over twenty thousand rare pamphlets, some dating back to the early 1920's. The scope of the Karl Niebyl library reflects his wide interests: including world history, economics, philosophy, Marxism-Leninism, labor history, art and aesthetics.
The Proctor legacy dovetails nicely with that of Niebyl. The two collections overlap in basic areas such us economics and philosophy, but Proctor has left us with a unique collection of archival material relating to the history of radical politics, the labor and trade unions movements, and struggles for racial, national and sexual equality.
Our goal is to preserve our written heritage, as well as support emerging struggles for racial and gender equality, and for Socialism..
The NPML makes available its resources to organizations throughout the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond.
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Upcoming Events
Sunday May 11th, 2008
10:00 AM
“The subprime debacle: new problems and dilemmas for the US ruling class”
Presenter: Karl Beitel
The recent meltdown of subprime mortgage market has sent shock waves through US and global financial markets. Estimates of the eventual loss of wealth in the US household sector from write-downs and foreclosures range from $300 billion to $1.2 trillion dollars. The crisis has called forth an unprecedented expansion of the degree, form and scope of intervention by Central Bank, and will eventually require a public bailout of the losses created by predatory – and in many case criminal – lending practices implicitly condoned by leading US banks. Of equally significance, the current crisis has badly tarnished the legitimacy of the US financial model based on deregulation, financial liberalization, and the proliferation of myriad forms of “structured” financial products that lie at the root of the subprime debacle.
The subprime crisis raises a series of profound questions this lecture and discussion will seek to address. Is the crisis merely a bump on the road to a renewed phase of credit-fueled growth? Or does it portending to a much deeper dislocation in the finance-led model of accumulation? How will the US domestic economy adjust, and what are the implications for US imperial and financial power given the impact of the crisis on foreigner’s confidence in the dollar? Most importantly, what are the implications for the US – and global – working class? Please join us for a discussion on these and related issues.
Karl Beitel holds a PhD in Sociology from the University of California at Davis. He has written several articles on international finance, US hegemony, and financial crisis. Recent publications have appeared in the journals Historical Materialism and Monthly Review.
Location: NPML 6501 Telegraph Ave. Oakland, CA 94609
Tuesday May 13th, 2008
7:00 PM
Venezuela and the Revolutionary Struggle
A talk by Jorge Martín
International Secretary of Hands Off Venezuela
Presented by the Venezuelan Solidarity Network
Jorge Martín, born in Barcelona, Catalonia, has been involved in the international
solidarity with the Venezuelan revolution from the very beginning. He was a founding
member of the international Hands Off Venezuela campaign, of which he is now the
International Secretary. He has written extensively on the Bolivarian revolution
and has traveled around the world speaking in its defense. He has visited Venezuela
often, participating in meetings and forums and holding discussions with revolutionary
activists. He has been actively involved in the movement of occupied factories in
Venezuela. Recently he attended the Havana Book Fair, just as the corporate media
frenzy over the change in leadership of the Cuban state was announced.
$5 suggested ($3 for students & seniors) with no one turned away for lack of
funds
For more information:
510-465-9914
Location: NPML 6501 Telegraph Ave. Oakland, CA 94609
Sunday May 18th, 2008
10:00 AM
The Bourgeoisie State and the Electoral Process
The Bourgeoisie State and the Electoral Process
This presentation will focus on the current nature of the Bourgeoisie State in the period of neo-Liberalism and the consequent developments within the electoral process. The focus will be on the USA.
Presented by Bob Patenaude
Location: NPML 6501 Telegraph Ave. Oakland, CA 94609
Saturday May 24th, 2008
6:00 PM
Zionism, Palestine and the U.S.
Speakers: Steve Zeltser, Sharat Lin and a labor activist from Egypt (we need to
confirm this last speaker)
Program:Pot luck dinner 6.00 PM - 7.00. PM
(Please bring one item of food or drink sufficient to share with 5 others
Location: NPML 6501 Telegraph Ave. Oakland, CA 94609
Saturday June 7th, 2008
10:00 AM
“Marx's Capital and Sustainable Development”
Political Affairs
Readers Group
Gathers the First Saturday of Each Month from 10:00 to Noon at the Niebyl-Proctor Library
The Communist Party USA (Oakland/Berkeley)
invites you to the Political Affairs Readers Group
We will discuss the article by Davis S. Pena entitled:
“Marx's Capital and Sustainable Development”
This article illustrates the enduring significance of Capital v. 1 by showing that it contains abundant material useful for understanding and solving the most daunting problem currently faced by humankind: the problem of sustainable development
Available in the Feb./March 2008 edition of Political Affairs.
Hard copies of the article available at the Library, or call to get a PDF file
Location: NPML 6501 Telegraph Ave. Oakland, CA 94609
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