34 results for "Biography"

Why Meadow died: the people and policies that created the Parkland shooter and endanger America's students

Pollack, Andrew,Eden, Max
Andrew Pollack, whose daughter Meadow was murdered in the Parkland, Florida high school shooting, teamed up with education expert Max Eden to find out how the Parkland shooter slipped through the cracks. They argue that the policies pioneered in Broward plague American schools, and make school shootings more likely.
Post Hill Press 2021-02-02 357 pages

Hitch-22: a memoir

Hitchens, Christopher
Over the course of his 60 years, Christopher Hitchens has been a citizen of both the United States and the United Kingdom. He has been both a socialist opposed to the war in Vietnam and a supporter of the U.S. war against Islamic extremism in Iraq. He has been both a foreign correspondent in some of the world's most dangerous places and a legendary bon vivant with an unquenchable thirst for alcohol and literature. He is a fervent atheist, raised as a Christian, by a mother whose Jewish heritage was not revealed to him until her suicide. In other words, Christopher Hitchens contains multitudes. He sees all sides of an argument. And he believes the personal is political. This is the story of his life, lived large.
Twelve 2010-06-02 435 pages

The next republic: the rise of a new radical majority

Guttenplan, D. D
What will the post-Trump return to democracy in America look like, and what are its historical antecedents? National political correspondent and award-winning author D. D. Guttenplan’s The Next Republic is an extraordinarily intense and wide-ranging exploration of how democracy rises and falls in America. The Next Republic introduces us to some of the organizers and politicians who are helping to bring about change in America, like new labor activist JANE McALEVEY; racial justice campaigner (and mayor of Jackson, Mississippi) CHOKWE ANTAR LUMUMBA; environmental activist (and chair of the Nebraska Democratic Party) JANE KLEEB; Chicago’s first openly gay Latino public official, CARLOS RAMIREZ-ROSA; Justice Democrats communications director WALEED SHAHID; communications director for Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s 2020 campaign CORBIN TRENT; and anti-corruption crusader ZEPHYR TEACHOUT. Guttenplan juxtaposes this new social movement with chapters on key transitions in our nation’s history: the Whiskey Rebellion, the Lincoln Republic, and the Roosevelt Republic. Altogether, Guttenplan deeply fathoms the great American problem that is our democracy, and the prospects for its resurgence. Both unyielding and resoundingly hopeful, The New Republic foresees the post-Trump era as one that may not only restore American values, but also see a radical new transformation of them to match the new challenges we face as a nation.
Seven Stories Press 2019-12-10 232 pages

After the miracle: the political crusades of Helen Keller

Wallace, Max
In this "stunning" new history, New York Times bestselling author Max Wallace draws on groundbreaking research to reframe Helen Keller's journey after the miracle at the water pump, vividly bringing to light her rarely discussed, lifelong fight for social justice across gender, class, race, and ability (Rosemary Sullivan, New York Times bestselling author). Kirkus Best Nonfiction Book of 2023 Raised in Alabama, she sent shockwaves through the South when she launched a public broadside against Jim Crow and donated to the NAACP. She used her fame to oppose American intervention in WWI. She spoke out against Hitler the month he took power in 1933 and embraced the anti-fascist cause during the Spanish Civil War. She was one of the first public figures to alert the world to the evils of Apartheid, raising money to defend Nelson Mandela when he faced the death penalty for High Treason, and she lambasted Joseph McCarthy at the height of the Cold War, even as her contemporaries shied away from his notorious witch hunt. But who was this revolutionary figure? She was Helen Keller. From books to movies to Barbie dolls, most mainstream portrayals of Keller focus heavily on her struggles as a deafblind child--portraying her Teacher, Annie Sullivan, as a miracle worker. This narrative--which has often made Keller a secondary character in her own story--has resulted in few people knowing that her greatest accomplishment was not learning to speak, but what she did with her voice when she found it. After the Miracle is a much-needed corrective to this antiquated narrative. In this first major biography of Keller in decades, Max Wallace reveals that the lionization of Sullivan at the expense of her famous pupil was no accident, and calls attention to Keller's efforts as a card-carrying socialist, fierce anti-racist, and progressive disability advocate. Despite being raised in an era when eugenics and discrimination were commonplace, Keller consistently challenged the media for its ableist coverage and was one of the first activists to highlight the links between disability and capitalism, even as she struggled against the expectations and prejudices of those closest to her. Peeling back the curtain that obscured Keller's political crusades in favor of her "inspirational" childhood, After the Miracle chronicles the complete legacy of one of the 20th century's most extraordinary figures.
Grand Central Publishing 2024-04-09 416 pages

The monkey and the dragon: a true story about friendship, music, politics and life on the edge

Jaivin, Linda
Memoir, biography and travel book, The Monkey and the Dragon is a story about the personal and political tumult of a changing China. Linda Jaivin traces this transformation through the life of Hou Dejian: Taiwan pop star, defector to communist China, hunger-striker at Tiananmen Square, political activist, celebrity fengshui master and friend.
Text Pub 2001 438 pages

Bright, infinite future: a generational memoir on the progressive rise

Green, Mark J.
"Blending the historical, biographical and political, this wide-ranging "memoir + manifesto" describes how the values of the 1960s are shaping a new progressive majority in 2016 and beyond. Multi-faceted Mark Green--bestselling author, public interest lawyer, elected official--guides us through contemporary American politics as Johnson retaliates against his antiwar work; Nader launches the modern consumer movement; Clinton wins the 1992 New York primary and therefore the nomination; the author debates Castro in Havana on human rights; and Green loses the closest NYC mayoral election in a century to Bloomberg after 9/11 in a perfect storm of money, terrorism, and race. As Public Advocate for New York City, Green is Mayor Giuiliani's bête noir--he exposes the NYPD's racial profiling, kills off Joe Camel, inspires the city's 311 system, and shows how a person who believes in positive, progressive government can make it work for average citizens. Starting with the consequential movements of the 1960s, Bright, Infinite Future tracks how a rising tide of minority and Millennial voters, the GOP's lurch from mainstream to extreme, and the contrast between the disastrous presidency of Bush 43 and the successful ones of Clinton and Obama are leading to a new era of "progressive patriotism" that will culminate in the 2016 presidential election. Full of behind-the-scenes stories about boldfaced names, this will be the 2016 book for liberals looking to Leonard Bernstein's 'bright, infinite future," conservatives who want to know what they're up against, and readers who want to know what it takes and what it's like "in the arena." "--
St. Martin's Press 2016-05-03 383 pages

Love and struggle: my life in SDS, the Weather Underground, and beyond

Gilbert, David
"Written from the maximum-security prison where he has lived for almost 30 years, this enlightening memoir chronicles the militant career of David Gilbert, a radical activist whose incarceration is due to his involvement in the 1981 Brinks robbery, an attempted expropriation that resulted in four deaths. From his entry into the world of political activism as the founder of Students for a Democratic Society at Columbia University to his departure from public life in order to help build the clandestine resistance to war and racism known as the Weathermen, Gilbert relates all of the victories he has achieved and obstacles he has encountered during his struggle to build a new world. In telling the intensely personal story he is stripped of all illusions and assesses his journey from liberal to radical to revolutionary with rare humor and frankness"--Amazon.com, viewed March 2, 2012.
PM Press 2012 336 pages

Calamities of exile: three nonfiction novellas

Weschler, Lawrence
From the author of Mr. Wilson's Cabinet of Wonder , Calamities of Exile combines three gripping narratives that afford a sort of double CAT scan into the natures of both modern totalitarianism and timeless exile. "Beautiful but harrowing chronicles of three exiles that probe the moral and personal risks of their encounters with totalitarianism. . . . Piercing and timely."— Kirkus Reviews , starred review "Weschler . . . combines a novelist's gift for drama with the objectivity and research skills of a journalist. . . . The result is three gripping profiles of very human but also extraordinary men."— Publishers Weekly "[Weschler's] thorough accounting of the men's covert operations, assumed identities and strained relationships with fathers, wives, and colleagues creates a disturbing triptych of the perils of totalitarianism."—Lance Gould, New York Times Book Review "Weschler tells these three tragic tales with an admirable combination of psychological penetration, intellectual thrust, concision and compassion."—Francis King, Spectator "Endlessly absorbing. . . . Breathtaking."—Jeri Laber, Los Angeles Times Book Review
University of Chicago Press 1998 199 pages

The Holocaust is over, we must rise from its ashes

Burg, Avraham
Modern-day Israel, and the Jewish community, are strongly influenced by the memory and horrors of Hitler and the Holocaust. Burg argues that the Jewish nation has been traumatized and has lost the ability to trust itself, its neighbors or the world around it. He shows that this is one of the causes for the growing nationalism and violence that are plaguing Israeli society and reverberating through Jewish communities worldwide. Burg uses his own family history--his parents were Holocaust survivors--to inform his innovative views on what the Jewish people need to do to move on and eventually live in peace with their Arab neighbors and feel comfortable in the world at large. Thought-provoking, compelling, and original, this book is bound to spark a heated debate around the world.
Palgrave Macmillan 2010 253 pages

Yippie girl: exploits in protest and defeating the FBI

Gumbo, Judy
HONORABLE MENTION, Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Award, Autobiography & Memoir! Lifelong activist Judy Gumbo, an original member of The Yippies, a 1960s anti-war satirical protest group, offers an insider feminist memoir of her involvement with the Yippies, Black Panthers, women's rights, environmental actions, and a life of activism. In 1968, a 24-year-old woman moved to Berkeley, California and immediately became enmeshed in the Youth International Party, aka The Yippies, an anti-war satirical protest group. In the next few years, Judy Gumbo (a nickname given her by Eldridge Cleaver), was soon at the center of counter-cultural activity-from protests in People's Park, to meetings at Black Panther headquarters, to running a pig for President at the raucous Democratic National Convention in Chicago, a protest that devolved into violent attacks by the police and arrests that led to the notorious Chicago Conspiracy Trial. In this historical account, Gumbo reveals intimate details of--and struggles with--her fellow radicals Jerry Rubin, Anita & Abbie Hoffman, Eldridge Cleaver, Paul Krassner, Stew Albert, and more, detailing their experiences in radical protests. This deep dive into her activism includes details of her organization of a national women's rights group, her visit to North Vietnam during the war, her travels around the globe to promote women's liberation and anti-war protest, and her environmental activism. It also includes extensive excerpts from illegal wiretaps and surveillance by the FBI. "A welcome addition to the literature of radical activism." --Kirkus Reviews "A fun read and a valuable political document, long overdue." --Counterpunch Yippie Girl explores Gumbo's life as a protester to show that, while circumstances always change, protesters can stay loyal to the causes they believe in and remain true to themselves. She also reveals how dogmatism, authoritarianism, and interpersonal conflict can damage those same just causes, offering a timeless and strategic guide for activists today protesting against injustice in all its forms.
Three Rooms Press 2022 333 pages

Making genes, making waves: a social activist in science

Beckwith, Jonathan R.
A thoroughly engrossing memoir that recounts Beckwith's halting steps toward scientific triumphs--among them, the discovery of the genetic element that turns on genes--as well as his emergence as a world-class political activist, "Making Genes, Making Waves" is a compelling history of the major controversies in genetics during the last 30 years.
Harvard University Press 2002-10-15 242 pages

Haunted by slavery: a southern white woman in the freedom struggle

Hall, Gwendolyn Midlo
The memoir of Gwendolyn Midlo Hall offers today's activists and readers an accessible and intimate examination of a crucial era in American radical history. Born in 1929 New Orleans to left-wing Jewish parents, Gwendolyn Midlo Hall's life has spanned nearly a century of engagement in anti-racist, internationalist political activism. In this moving and instructive chronicle of her remarkable life, Midlo Hall recounts her experiences as an anti-racist activist, a Communist Party militant, and a scholar of slavery in the Americas, as well as the wife and collaborator of the renowned African-American author and Communist leader Harry Haywood. Telling the story of her life against the backdrop of the important political and social developments of the 20th century, Midlo Hall offers new insights about a critical period in the history of labor and civil rights movements in the United States. Detailing everything from Midlo Hall's co-founding of the only inter-racial youth organization in the South when she was 16-years-old, to her pioneering work establishing digital slave databases, to her own struggles against cruel and pervasive sexism, Haunted by Slavery is a gripping account of a life defined by profound dedication to a cause.
Haymarket Books 2021 234 pages