Vito Marcantonio - Later Life

Later Life

After his defeat in mayoral and congressional elections, Marcantonio continued to practice law. It was his law practice, maintained while in Congress, that gave him the money to substantially self-finance his political campaigns. At first he practiced in Washington, D.C. but he soon returned to New York City, where he died from a heart attack after coming up the subway stairs, on Broadway by City Hall Park, August 9, 1954.

Marcantonio's collection of speeches, I Vote my Conscience edited by Annette Rubenstein had an effect on a generation of younger radicals. His defense of workers rights, his mastery of parliamentary procedure, his ability to relate to the workers in his district while also engaging in worldwide issues, made him a hero to a certain section of the left.