Meyer Parodneck

Meyer Parodneck (1904–1994) was a Polish-born American social advocate known for establishing community-based self-help initiatives in New York City.

Biography Born in Poland, Parodneck immigrated to Manhattan at age ten and grew up in poverty on the Lower East Side. He graduated from New York Law School in 1924 and practiced as a trial lawyer and corporate counsel.

During the Great Depression, Parodneck focused increasingly on social issues, notably organizing public rallies to prevent homeowner evictions and lobbying Congress for mortgage relief legislation. The foundation provided low- and no-interest loans for rehabilitating tenant-occupied and abandoned buildings in Manhattan and Brooklyn, an approach known as urban homesteading.