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Keyser, Dora Stoller (audio interview #3 of 4)
INTERVIEW DESCRIPTION - This is the third of three interviews conducted with Dora Keyser in her home for a women's oral history class at UCLA. Keyser was a willing participant and easily established rapport with the interviewer, to whom she was introduced by Sherna Berger Gluck, who was teaching the class at UCLA. A fourth interview was conducted three years later by Gluck. 1974-3
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- 2021-01-27
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- *** File: refdkeyser7.mp3 Audio Segments and Topics: (0:00-3:07)... Prior to the Russian Revolution, Keyser and her husband were living in New York in a cooperative vegetarian restaurant where they held mass meetings with socialists and anarchists. After the revolution, "we found out who was an anarchist and who was not." Keyser digresses regarding the collaboration with Fellowship Farm, a German socialist cooperative located near the Ferrer Colony in Stelton, New Jersey. (3:07-8:06)... During the Russian Revolution, there was no tension between the communists and the anarchists in the Ferrer Colony. The two groups worked together at the Ferrer School and combined their efforts in developing the colony and organizing community projects. It was not until factions developed in the labor unions that the communists felt that "fighting the union was more important than getting anything from the boss." When a woman who was a leader in the CP moved to the Ferrer Colony, she influenced the other communists and disputes arose with the anarchists. Many of the residents of the Ferrer Colony were employed in the needle trades and helped organize the union. Communists were disruptive to their way of life by encouraging strikes and picketing the colony with signs calling these union organizers scabs. Keyser's sister was a communist and besides defending their brother, she believed everything she heard about the colonists. (8:06-16:28)... Keyser and her husband were in Philadelphia when the Palmer Raids took place. He was the secretary and treasurer of the Union of Russian Workers. She limited her activities during that period because she was raising her nieces. She did not approve of the women in the movement who took their children to meetings or left them home alone. Her husband was not at the meeting hall the evening the authorities raided the Union of Russian Workers. They considered him a "dangerous leader" and frequently visited the hall and inquired about his whereabouts. Although the authorities did not have their address, her husband did not come home for several nights to avoid arrest. In the mean time, Keyser slowly got rid of the anarchist literature in their home by sneaking it out at night and delivering it to her husband's hiding place. She visited the radicals who were arrested in jail and learned that police brutality was rampant. She participated in efforts to raise funds to purchase clothing for the people deported during the winter months. The authorities did not arrest her because her last name was Stoller and they did not consider her a threat just because she was Keyser's sweetheart. (16:28-23:13)... Their is a pause in this segment during which Keyser explains how the Anarchist Red Cross raised money. Keyser did not keep in contact with any of the radicals who were deported after the Palmer Raids. Her brother was the secretary of the Anarchist Red Cross at that time. Except for attending yearly socials, she was not involved with the organization. After the Russian Revolution, the Anarchist Red Cross wrote to political prisoners in Siberia and sent them money. Under the czar, prisoners were able to use this money to bribe guards for their release. When communism was instituted, however, this was impossible to do and many atrocities took place in prison. Keyser recalls that graft was a prominent feature in czarist Russia. When her parents were unable to pay a fine, the authorities confiscated their furniture. In order to avoid this, they paid a local police officer half a ruble to warn them when the authorities were coming so that they could hide their furniture. (23:13-24:34)... Although there were mass meetings during the Palmer Raids, radicals did not organize any public demonstrations in order to avoid arrest and deportation. While there was more freedom exercised by radicals in America than permitted under dictatorships, the atmosphere was not conducive to organizing a mass movement against the raids. (24:34-28:28)... Keyser's husband was in hiding for a couple of months following the Palmer Raids. When things calmed down, they got involved in efforts to get Thomas Mooney released from prison and also protested the death sentences facing Sacco and Vanzetti. During this period, they moved to the Ferrer Colony and began publication on the Road to Freedom. The colonists built a room for Hippolyte Havel in the library where he lived while writing and editing pieces for the Road to Freedom. He was a charismatic man who was connected with the intellectuals, artists and writers of Greenwich Village. She asked that the tape be turned off so that she could discuss his relationship with Emma Goldman. (28:28-29:55)... The anarchists and the communists in the Ferrer Colony worked together to raise money for the Sacco-Vanzetti Committee to aid in their defense. It turned out, however, that none of their money went to the committee but was given to the Daily Worker. The same thing happened with a fundraising campaign for striking mineworkers. At that time, the anarchists separated themselves from the communists and began working on their own. Although they lived like a family, "we found out the hard way that you can't work with the communists on anything." End of tape. *** File: refdkeyser8.mp3 (0:00-1:17)... The colonists in the Ferrer Colony raised money for the Sacco-Vanzetti Committee by hosting dinners and organizing other fundraising activities. The colonists were also heavily involved in the defense of Thomas Mooney. (1:17-6:15)... Keyser was a shy in her twenties and did not feel comfortable lecturing. However, she participated in all of the activities that took place in the Ferrer Colony. While living there, she could leave her children alone because everyone in the colony took responsibility for each other's children. Occasionally, she left her children at night after they went to bed to go meetings outside the colony. Although she and her husband were equally active, she admits that he was an organizer and attended more meetings than her. (6:15-8:41)... The school at the Ferrer Colony was a cultural center. Concerts, dances, or a performance was held every Saturday night for which they charged .25 admission. Even though tuition to the school was $1/week, or $7/week for children who lived at the school, some people could not afford to pay these fees. As a result, they held fundraisers to help pay teachers' salaries and important contributors were labor unions. Children whose parents could not afford to pay tuition were not denied admission to the school. (8:41-12:10)... The teaching philosophy at the school in the Ferrer Colony emphasized the "development of the child" through natural exploration, music and arts and crafts. Weekly assemblies were held in which students sang and performed interpretative dances. The students were allowed to choose the topics they wanted to study and the teachers were expected to help them develop skills in those areas rather than teach them a scheduled set of academic lessons. (12:10-17:12)... The Ferns were often criticized for their teaching styles by both outsiders and people living in the Ferrer Colony. Communists felt that students should be educated on the labor movement. The Ferns, however, believed that children learned by actions and when and if their parents went on strike they would learn about unions at that time. They believed that the most important thing was to develop the child's creative instinct ; that children should develop on a social level and experience life through culture and creative thinking. Although the Firms did not establish a traditional academic curriculum, they prepared students for public school. Those children were in the top of the class at their high schools and their teachers and principals visited the Ferrer school to observe its educational programs. (17:12-22:34)... Keyser's children were educated at the Ferrer Colony until they moved to Sunrise Farm when they were thirteen and nine. Even though the Board of Education established a school there, the residents of Sunrise Farm ran the school. Her nine-year-old son could not read or write when he started going to school at Sunrise Farm. Within two weeks, however, he had learned these skills and was reciting poetry to the class. Up to that point, his education had mainly focused on studying and experiencing life. The Firms felt that a child must learn how to experience things before he can understand them. Their philosophy was so successful that some parents took their children out of public school and enrolled them in the Ferrer school where they improved within a short time. (22:34-29:33)... Although anarchists were not "fighting for feminism" it was natural for them to believe in women's rights. The men and women who lived on the Ferrer Colony worked equally to support their families both in and outside the home. The Firms hired both men and women as teachers because they believed that there was "no separation between men and women's ability." Mr. Firm was protective of the women and condemned the men who made their women bear the brunt of responsibility in the home. In her own experience, Keyser credits her husband with helping her develop her independence. End of tape. *** File: refdkeyser9.mp3 (0:00-4:46)... Keyser's home was the center of activity when she lived on the Ferrer Colony. When meetings were not scheduled to take place at the school or the library, they were held in her home. And, if someone from the city needed a place to stay, they were taken to her home, so she always had a full house. She grew vegetables and fruits in her yard and during the summer she organized large dinners where she served her fresh canned foods. Her husband did not expect women to bear all of the cooking responsibilities and was very capable of preparing meals for himself and the rest of the family. (4:46-5:32)... Many people in the Ferrer Colony worked in jobs outside the colony. Her husband worked in Newark and had to take a bus a mile and a half to get on a train bound for the city. When he got tired of the poor bus service, he established a cooperative bus service. When their grocer gave them trouble, he also organized a cooperative grocery store. (5:32-10:56)... In 1929, Keyser and her family moved to Sunrise Farm because it was "an ideal cooperative farm to further your ideas where you don't have to go out to work in the city." The farm was established as an anarchist cooperative [by someone she names as Joseph Cohen]. His partner misguided people when he told them their $500 membership fee would take care of their expenses and would not require them to work the farm. Sunrise Farm was an industrial farm equipped with machinery and a distilling house for the purposes of distilling peppermint into oil. Approximately 500 people lived on the farm, most of which were families. Initially, only fifty people went to the farm in order to improve the accommodations. Her husband was among this first group because he was asked to help bring electricity and plumbing to the farm. (10:56-11:49)... Sunrise Farm was an industrial farm where people worked in a communal fashion according to their individual needs. In contrast, most of the people who lived on the Ferrer Colony went into the city to work and a proportion of their wages went towards developing and operating the school on the colony. (11:49-17:42)... The school on Sunrise Farm was run by a married couple who treated the children poorly. Since Keyser and her husband were familiar with the educational philosophies developed at the Ferrer school, they reformed the school with the support of Joseph Cohen and the residents of Sunrise Farm. They were assisted by a labor activist who was "well-versed in the philosophy of the modern school." She organized a parents meeting and explained her educational philosophies and talked about the improvements they would see in their children. She also reorganized the school kitchen and changed the menu. She got the children involved in this process by allowing them to vote on the types of foods offered on the menu and also put them in charge of setting and clearing the tables. (17:42-20:47)... Keyser established a children's committee at Sunrise Farm to help reorganize the school kitchen. She ran into difficulty assigning tasks to the children because they often disagreed on who was best for the jobs. In one such dispute, the children refused to elect a troublemaker to replenish the coals in the basement because they thought he was irresponsible. Keyser convinced the children to agree to his appointment as long as he was supervised. She also encountered a situation with two children who she suspected and confirmed were stealing. She resolved the issue by giving them love and attention, which was something they did not get from their own parents. (20:47-24:09)... Keyser was not picky about who worked in the school kitchen at Sunrise Farm. When a blind woman volunteered, Keyser had to follow her around very discreetly to make sure she did not dish the servings onto the floor instead of the plates. In addition to raising her own garden, several people grew gardens and contributed their food to the school kitchen. She also assigned the children the task of cultivating their own garden. She was very resourceful with food and saved every scrap in order to get another meal out of it. (24:09-26:49)... In some ways, the demographics at Sunrise Farm were different than the Ferrer Colony. Sunrise Farm was visited more by the general public, particularly college students who stayed at the cooperative during the summer. There also were more families at Sunrise Farm. They worked together to earn their keep. Some parents would not have been able to support their children on the wages they earned working outside the cooperative. Regardless of their individual production, members of the cooperative earned $10/month if the cooperative earned enough for the month. In regards to gender relations, flirtations and extramarital affairs occurred on the cooperative as they had at the Ferrer Colony. (26:49-30:14)... According to their capabilities, women on Sunrise Farm could do the same type of work as the men. Everyone worked in the fields tending to and harvesting the crops. Although women managed the cooperative kitchen and did most of the cooking, men helped out in various capacities. Women were "pretty much what they wanted to be. They chose the label they wanted." End of tape. *** File: refdkeyser10.mp3 (0:00-2:39)... Although people on Sunrise Farm chose what type of work they wanted to do, those with specific skills were expected to do the work associated with those skills. For example, Keyser's husband was responsible for the electrical and plumbing jobs because he was the only one skilled in those areas. Complaints about the type of work the labor manager asked people to do usually came from the adolescents on the cooperative. While women had more job opportunities on the cooperative than they did on the outside, the opportunities in "their own personal life and in their families... was a different thing." (2:39-8:26)... The sexual liberation of the 1920s went greatly unnoticed by Keyser. It was a period in which certain social groups, like the anarchists, developed an open mind about the ideas espoused by Emma Goldman and/or Margaret Sanger. Mainly young people lived in the Ferrer Colony and were probably "thinking in terms of free love and birth control." Sunrise Farm was a mixed population of young and old, but the majority of people were married. People did not talk openly about sex. Free love and sexuality were discussed in a theoretical manner. Some people interpreted free love as license to be irresponsible and promiscuous and "that was not what the anarchist philosophy was. It has to be common consent living together with respect and responsibility for the after effects." (8:26-10:51)... Abortion was widespread when she was a young woman. Whenever she got pregnant her husband left it up to her to decide whether or not to terminate the pregnancy. When she moved into the Ferrer Colony, she had a three-month old son. While there she got pregnant a second time and made arrangements to get an abortion in New York. When she arrived at the doctor's office, however, she backed out. (10:51-14:18)... Keyser was twenty when she had her first abortion. She was referred to a doctor who was a socialist. He did the procedure in his home for $10. She did not have any anesthesia and it was a very painful experience. She was accompanied by a girlfriend who held her hand during the operation and also helped the doctor complete the abortion. Keyser had several abortions in her youth, for some she received medication and was unconscious. (14:18-16:50)... Keyser gave birth to both her sons in the hospital. Her first son was delivered by a Chinese woman and her second by a male physician. She did receive prenatal care from both these physicians and more often than not, nurses gave her physical examinations. (16:50-19:22)... Keyser made close friends while she was living at the Ferrer Colony and considered most of them family. She befriended people who shared the same interests and philosophies as her own. She continued to socialize with at least two women she met there, one of whom lived across from the Ferrer Colony at Fellowship Farm. (19:22-21:38)... Keyser's husband did not accompany her when she got her abortions because he had to stay home and take care of their children. When she was living at Sunrise Farm, he drove her to Detroit so that she could get an abortion, but "he didn't have to come and hold my hand." He also was not present when she gave birth to their sons. She believes that it was financially necessary for her to get abortions because she and her husband were already struggling raising their other children. (21:38-26:51)... Keyser is more mature now than she was in her twenties and believes her relationship with her husband would have been better had she been as mature then as she is now. Since his death, she has no one to discuss things with because the people in her life are probably not interested in her ideals. Besides being too busy to discuss her personal beliefs with acquaintances, she does not share similar political or personal philosophies with the people she sees on a regular basis. Her activities include fundraising for the City of Hope and taking music and ceramic classes. She attends meetings at the farm workers union, but is disappointed with the way communists have assumed a leadership role in that movement. End of tape.
- SUBJECT BIO - Dora Stoller Keyser was a lifelong anarchist activist, starting from the age of fifteen, two years after she arrived in the US. Born in the Ukraine, the 17th of 18 children, Dora Keyser was the last of her family to emigrate to the US with her mother in 1913 after her father's death. She recalls not only the pogroms in her native village, but also the protection that Gentile neighbors provided for her family. Like most of her siblings, she had very little education in Russia. After arriving in New York, at the age of thirteen, she started in the first grade. Within two years, she finished through the sixth grade. However, she dropped out of school to care for her sick sister and then went to work in the garment industry, participating in the 1916 strike of the ILGWU, Local 22. Gaining a political education from the lectures and activities in her Brownsville neighborhood, Keyser joined the anarchist movement when she was fifteen, following in the footsteps of some of her siblings. After her sister's death, she and her common law "husband" took over the care of her two children. Later, they had two children of their own. The Keyser family lived for a while first at the Ferrer Colony in Stilton, NJ and then later at the Sunrise Farm in upstate Michigan. Keyser and her partner played an active role in the activities of the two anarchist colonies, particularly in setting up a school. Keyser was close to many of the more prominent figures in the anarchist movement, including Rudolf Rocker, whose papers she helped to organize in later years in Los Angeles. She also provided housing for other anarchists and after the death of one of her roomers, she began to produce ceramic busts of Voltarine deCleyre from the molds that he had left. She remained a staunch anarchist and advocate of vegetarianism all her life. At the time of the interview she was still singing with the ILGWU Mandolin Orchestra and continuing to raise funds for the United Farm Workers. The interviews with Keyser were conducted by a women's oral history student at UCLA in conjunction with the Feminist History Research Project. An additional short interview about Rudolf Rocker was conducted later by project director Sherna Berger Gluck at the behest of the Minnesota Libertarian Society. TOPICS - schism between communists and anarchists Russian Revolution; relationship between Ferrer Colony anarchists and German socialist colony, Fellowship Farm; life during red scare and Palmer Raids; Anarchist Red Cross; participation in support of Thomas Mooney and Sacco and Vanzetti; Road to Freedom; the Ferrer Colony; and Hippolyte Havel;fundraising for Sacco-Vanzetti Committee; Thomas Mooney defense committee; Ferrer Colony; marital relationship and gender roles; educational programs and activities at the Ferrer School; Firm's child development and educational philosophies; school on the Sunrise Farm cooperative; views on educational and child development; anarchism and feminism; and gender roles and expectations in anarchist movement;life in the Ferrer Colony; marital relationship and gender roles; residents at Ferrer Colony; husband's development of cooperatives; move to Sunrise Farm; work assignments at Sunrise Farm; efforts to reorganize cooperative school and kitchen; establishing children's committee; structure of work duties on cooperative; gender relations; and gender roles;structure of work on Sunrise Farm; disputes with labor manager; gender roles and gender relations on the cooperative; sexual liberation of the 1920s; free love in the anarchist movement; abortion; marital relationship; prenatal care and childbirth; friends; activities with City of Hope; and personal interests;
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