Protest Nation: Words That Inspired a Century of American Radicalism

by Timothy Patrick McCarthy, John McMillian

Protest Nation is a guide through the speeches, letters, broadsides, essays, and manifestos that form the backbone of the American radical tradition in the twentieth century. With examples from socialists, feminists, union organizers, civil-rights workers, gay and lesbian activists, and environmentalists that have served as beacons for millions, the volume also includes brief introductory essays by the editors that provide a rich biographical and historical context for each selection included. Selections include a fiery speech by socialist Eugene Debs, an astonishing treatise on animal liberation by Peter Singer, "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson, Harvey Milk's "The Hope Speech" and many others.

Genres: Nonfiction

256 pages, Paperback

First published April 20, 2010

Reviews

[Sidik Fofana · Rating 3 out of 5]

SIX WORD REVIEW: Write it. Say it. Spray it.

[Vincent · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed the speeches put into this book, but, what was the point of this book? These are all speeches that can be easily accessed online and really don’t give much context as to what was happening that led up to these pieces being created. To me it was just felt like the editors were like hey let’s put some stuff together and profit off of the words of others. To me, this book didn’t achieve much by just reprinting the words of others and offering no context, analysis, or anything special.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

As the authors mention, America is a "protest nation." Our creation was based on protest against our treatment by the Mother Country. We've protested slavery, treatment by employers, wars, almost everything. McCarthy and McMillan have done a great job in combining original sources to show the history of protest in the 20th century.

Starting it all out is an excerpt from a book that probably all Americans have read or at least heard about: The Jungle. It is an example of the kind of protest that socialist writers used early in the century, subtle but thorough. Examples then extend to Abbie Hoffman, Emma Goldberg, Eugene Debs, Malcolm X, and more.

Most of the entries we see as protesters - at least those of us who lived through the 60s: Malcolm X, Abbie Hoffman, SDS, Martin Luther King, Jr., the Black Panther Party. But some of the excerpts here are lesser or not known as typical protesters: Rachel Carson (Silent Spring), Peter Singer (Animal Liberation) and Robin Morgan (No More Miss America!).

The mix is interesting and the excerpts (or speeches or pamphlets) are generally good. Especially good are those from the 60s because those protesters were so colorful, articulate, in-your-face. But some of the others are unexpected. My favorite among those I hadn't considered protesters was Robin Morgan and her tirade against the Miss America pageant.

The excerpts tend to get a bit tiresome towards the end. Although gay rights, animal rights, sexual politics and others are protests, they just don't have the same impact on the reader as the excerpt from the Jungle or the colorfulness of the 60s protesters.

One of the "protests" (which I'm not sure I consider a protest) was Alan Ginsberg's Howl. I'd never read it before.

For those who are interested in protests in the American 20th century, this is a great book to get you started. I guarantee that along the way you'll find authors or causes that you want to pursue.

[Ruth Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

On one hand, I appreciated the brevity - on the other, this really just skimmed the surface of the subject. Each reading was preceded with only a few paragraphs of introduction. Most readings were short and pithy, with a few exceptions: the 1962 SDS statement and the 1970s AIM statement were quite repetitive. The value of this book for me is to serve as an index, almost, of significant protest materials for further investigation.

[Steven Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great source material and titles for further suggested reading. It helped me build part of my conceptual unit on protest literature.

[Jason S · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting anthology, but not really anything that mindblowing. Most speeches in here are available elsewhere. Some usefulness for OI script ideas, otherwise just OK.

[Matt Van Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Essential reading for anyone interested in the fight for social justice.