Dave Selden, the president of the American Federation of Teachers from 1968 to 1974, died May 8 of heart failure. He was 83.
As the federation’s top officer during a time of increasing teacher militancy, Mr. Selden emphasized union organizing. He was jailed in 1968 during a teachers’ strike in Newark, N.J.
Mr. Selden taught history in Dearborn, Mich., and served as the the president of the Dearborn Federation of Teachers. In the mid-1950s, he organized teachers in New York City. Along with the late Albert Shanker, Mr. Selden built the former Teachers Guild into the United Federation of Teachers.
Mr. Shanker successfully challenged Mr. Selden for the presidency of the national union in 1974.
