Fischer, Ruth eigentlich Elfriede Eisler

Fischer, Ruth (real name: Elfriede Eisler), b. Leipzig, Gemany, Dec. 11, 1895, d. Paris, France, March 13, 1961, social worker and politician (KPÖ - Communist Party); sister of the composer Hanns Eisler. Founded the Kommunistische Partei Österreichs in Vienna on November 3, 1918, but could not hold her own as party leader and went to Berlin, where she was chairwoman of the KPD (German Communist Party) in 1924-25 and member of the German Reichsrat, where she was highly esteemed for her oratorical skills. After her flight from Germany to Paris in 1933, she emigrated to the United States in 1941, where she adopted a critical attitude towards Stalinism and supported the House Committee on Un-American Activities. After Stalin's death in 1953, she hoped Communism would adopt a more positive course. She returned to Europe in 1955 and lived in Paris until her death.

Works: Deutsche Kinderfibel, 1933 (together with F. Heimann); Stalin and German Communism, 1948 Die Umformung der Sowjetgesellschaft, 1958.

Literature: P. Lübbe (ed.), Ruth Fischer und A. Maslow. Abtrünnig wider Willen, 1990; S. Hering and K. Schilde, Kampfname Ruth Fischer. Wandlungen einer deutschen Kommunistin, 1995.