Harry Nier – Gone But Not Forgotten…At Least By Those Who Knew Him

September, 1979 – Harry Nier – third on the left with the sign “No rate hikes, cut the cost of utilities.” Immediately behind him, part hidden, Elaine Schell; behind her Dick Ayre. In front of Harry, Danny Graul, leading the pack with the sign “PSC stockholders get profits, PSC users get fuel cost adjustments” is Jack Galvin.

The news came to me this evening that Harry Nier, Denver lawyer, a lifelong socialist, secular Jew, with a particular love and knowledge of Fidel Castro’s Cuba, died this past Monday. I do not know the details beyond the fact that Harry suffered from Alzheimers for these past 4-5 years and that the condition overwhelmed him in the end. I believe that he was about 90 years of age.

The last time I saw Harry was at a Middle Eastern restaurant about five years ago on South Colorado Blvd, known to locals as “The Gaza Strip.” I was coming out with hummus and he and a friend were entering. It had been years since I’d seen him; but he recognized me and I, him; We spoke briefly; I made one of those mental notes to track him down, see him again, but as often happens, never got round to it and he died.

I especially thought of Harry when the Obama Administration announced it was going to end the more than half century economic blockade against Cuba, which Harry had worked so hard and persistently for all of his life. I wanted to drink a toast with him, to congratulate him on his commitment to improving U.S. Cuban relations. If I remember correctly, Harry Nier visited Cuba more than 20 times, during all those years when it was technically illegal to do so. On several occasions Harry met with and had long discussions with Cuban leader, Fidel Castro whom he knew personally.

I don’t know that Harry Nier ever joined this or that left group, but he was, even as a successful and prosperous lawyer, a life long socialist with a genuine commitment to poor and working class people. Harry Nier was born in New York City on August 13, 1926. At the age of six months his family came to Denver. He went to East High School and then to the University of Colorado in Boulder and then from University of Colorado Law School in 1950. Nier was a part of a group of extraordinary lawyers that included Rudy Schware, Gene Dykeman,Walter Gerash in the 1950s. Together they defended those Colorado Communists and leftists called before the House of Un-american Activities Committee; SDS, the Crusade For Justice, Vietnam draft resisters, etc. this they did successfully, virtually for free and Harry, as well as the others, stayed in Denver and built his practice and his life here.

I first met Harry in the summer of 1970.

I had been arrested, along with life-long friend and associate Jay Jurie as a part of what was then referred to as the Boulder 17. We were a part of a group on the University of Colorado Boulder campus protesting an ROTC drill. Most of us, myself included were arrested and charged at first with felonies. I went to jail. It was then that I met Harry. As a part of the National Lawyers’ Guild he represented me gratis, got me and others, out of jail on bail and through his work – along with that of Gene Dykeman – got the felony charges first reduced and the thrown out by a Boulder Federal Judge. At the same time the University of Colorado lodged charges against me as well which could have led to my expulsion from graduate school. Again, Harry Nier successfully represented me and won the case.

During the years I knew and worked with him, Harry bounced around between this and that left group, never, at least to my knowledge, joining any – working with all. He belonged, identified with all of us, gave us support and never held back with his criticisms of what he understood to be our shortcomings I didn’t know much about his personal life although I saw him often enough, but I don’t believe he had a lifetime partner or was married. For a number of years he worked with the Denver International Film Festival to bring Cuban films to Denver.

I hear that Harry wants his ashes spread on Mt. Elbert in Colorado – which he climbed not once but frequently – and in Cuba. Harry…rest in peace. I regret that those of us who knew you and in spite of all your damned quirkiness – respected and loved you…couldn’t see you off on your journey to wherever.

I will add to this obituary as I collect information about Harry’s life. Yours was a lifetime of commitment to others,, a rare bird indeed. Harry Nier, Rudy Schware, Gene Dykeman, Walter Gerash…the likes of these in the Colorado legal profession are rare these days.,.and were then.

Harry rest in peace.

Rob P.

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In order to help pay his way through law school, Harry Nier drove a cab…and thus was part of a tradition of radical Denverites who did a stint at the cab company. This is a copy of his cab driver’s license. It is dated 1953

This from Allan Hafley:

Richard Roth was kind enough to send me the link to Rob Prince’s blog concerning the death of Harry Nier.

Many of you knew Harry or knew of him and I thought you might like to see the tribute Rob wrote.

Harry and the other lawyers named in Rob’s piece were “Movement Lawyers” in the finest sense of the word and helped countless individuals and organizations.

I first met Harry in the fall of 1967. Shortly after the Day of Draft Resistance on 10/16/1967 I was indicted by the Feds for non-possession of my draft card. Harry and Gene Dykeman took on my case, filed a 75 page brief challenging the legality of the draft and the Vietnam War.

Within weeks the Department of Justice decided they did not want to argue the case and dropped the charges.

As Rob mentions Harry was passionate about the Cuban Revolution, loved to talk politics and to challenge us about what we doing and advocating. Because we were in Boulder and Harry was in Denver I did not really see him that often but considered him a friend who went out of his way to help when most people thought we should be imprisoned or worse.

When I Googled Harry’s name a batch of FBI documents came up from the Harold Weisberg Archive (the file was too large to attach to this email) . Weisberg was one of the early critics of the Warren Report and wrote a number of books on the JFK assassination. At the time of JFK’s
murder Harry was the head of Fair Play for Cuba in Colorado. The gist of the heavily redacted reports is that the FBI was trying to prove that Harry knew Lee Harvey Oswald. Of course it was all garbage, another attempt by the FBI to smear and/or indict innocent citizens.

As the years roll on it is easy to forget all the people who stepped forward to help in our hour of need.

Harry was one of the good guys.

Allan Haifley

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Harry Nier, an avid mountain climber, here a top a Cuban mountain.