Zametkin was born on January 6, 1859, in Odessa, Russia,[1] the son of papakhi manufacturer Chaim Yoel and Malka.
He was involved in the revolutionary movement from a young age, and in 1877-1878 he was one of the 28 members of the first Odessa “kruzshok" (circle), which established an illegal school to teach Jewish youngsters Russian and socialism.
In 1882, he immigrated to America for political reasons as the head of the first Odessa Am Olam and settled in New York City.
[3] Shortly after arriving in America, Zametkin took a prominent position as a pioneer in the Jewish socialist movement.
In 1890, he was a founder of the social democratic weekly Di Arbayter Tsaytung (The Workers’ Newspaper), which he was a main leader of until the paper ceased publishing in 1902.
He wrote a number of topics for the paper, including economic and socio-political issues, semi-fictional stories and allegories with a socialist character, current events, and literature.