Posner, Seymour, 1925-1988.

Assemblyman and labor legislator Seymour Posner was born on May 21, 1925 to Nathan Posner and Fannie Gittleman. He was raised in the Bronx, New York, and in 1942 he enlisted and served in the 3rd Infantry Regiment in France and Germany during World War II, during which he lost hearing in one ear. Upon his return to New York, he enrolled at the City College of New York, earning a B.S. in Social Science in 1948. He began his active involvement in Democratic politics during this time, as a supporter and officer in the Young Democrats. His involvement with the labor movement also began about this time, as he chaired the organizing committee of Local 371 of the Government and Civic Employees Organizing Committee from 1949 to 1951 and was a member of the CIO Central Labor Council of the AFL-CIO from 1949 to 1954. In 1958 Posner completed the master's degree program at New York University's School of Public Administration.

Posner became the public relations director for the Urban League of Greater New York in 1958 and served as director of Public Relations for several Marches on Washington in 1958, 1959 and 1963 with Dr. Martin Luther King. He spent several days in a Maryland jail as a Freedom Rider in 1963. Posner served as the community relations director to the Manhattan Borough President for one year, from 1961-1962. He then served as the Bronx director for the American Jewish Congress (circa 1962-64) and during the whole period he worked in public relations and direct-mail marketing of services primarily aimed at the housing market.

...