| Meyer London |
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London was born in Kalvarija , Lithuania in 1871. In 1891, he emigrated to the United States, taking up residence in New York's largely Jewish Lower East Side . London became a labor lawyer representing Labor Unions . He ran for Congress three times as a Socialist and was defeated by Tammany Hall -supported Democrats , but in 1914, London was elected to Congress from his Lower East Side district. He was the second Socialist elected to Congress, following Wisconsin 's Victor Berger . His vote against the American entry into World War I and subsequent votes against the Espionage Act angered his constituency, and he lost reelection in 1918. Two years later, in 1920, the Lower East Side sent London back to Congress. He was defeated for reelection in 1922. London died after being hit by an automobile in 1926. Ironically, in spite of his votes against the earlier war, he became the namesake of a World War II Liberty Ship , the SS ''Meyer London'' , launched in 1943 . |