Best of
Activism

1994

You Can't Be Neutral on a Moving Train: A Personal History of Our Times


Howard Zinn - 1994
    A former bombardier in WWII, Zinn emerged in the civil rights movement as a powerful voice for justice. Although he's a fierce critic, he gives us reason to hope that by learning from history and engaging politically, we can make a difference in the world.

Outlaw Culture: Resisting Representations


bell hooks - 1994
    Targeting cultural icons as diverse as Madonna and Spike Lee, Outlaw Culture presents a collection of essays that pulls no punches. As hooks herself notes, interrogations of popular culture can be a 'powerful site for intervention, challenge and change'. And intervene, challenge and change is what hooks does best.

The Rainbow of Desire: The Boal Method of Theatre and Therapy


Augusto Boal - 1994
    It is Augusto Boal's bold and brilliant statement about the therapeutic ability of theatre to liberate individuals and change lives. Now translated into English and comprehensively updated from the French, Rainbow of Desire sets out the techniques which help us `see' for the first time the oppressions we have internalised. Boal, a Brazilian theatre director, writer and politician, has been confronting oppression in various forms for over thirty years. His belief that theatre is a means to create the future has inspired hundreds of groups all over the world to use his techniques in a multitude of settings. This, his latest work, includes such exercises as: * The Cops in the Head and their anti-bodies * The screen image * The image of the future we are afraid of * Image and counter-image ....and many more. Rainbow of Desire will make fascinating reading for those already familiar with Boal's work and is also completely accessible to anyone new to Theatre of the Oppressed techniques.

Hear My Testimony: Maria Teresa Tula Human Rights Activist of El Salvador


Maria Teresa Tula - 1994
    The human side of the civil war in El Salvador and decades of repression come to the fore in this woman's tale of extraordinary courage and ordinary labor.

Created Equal: Why Gay Rights Matter to America


Michael Nava - 1994
    Beginning with an examination of the determined assault on gay issues by the religious right, the authors show how this sectarian movement to legislate private religious morality into law undermines the purpose of American constitutional government: the protection of the individual's right to determine how best to live his or her life. The book starts from the premise that gay and lesbians are, first and foremost, American citizens, and then looks to what rights belong to every individual American citizen, arguing from the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Addressing their argument to the great majority of their fellow Americans, Dawidoff and Nava emphasize that what is at stake is not the fate of the gay community, but the future of constitutional principle and the rights of free individuals in American society.

The John Carlos Story: The Sports Moment That Changed the World


John Carlos - 1994
    Yet their show of defiance remains one of the most iconic images of Olympic history and the Black Power movement. Here is the remarkable story of one of the men behind the salute, lifelong activist John Carlos.John Carlos is an African American former track and field athlete, professional football player, and a founding member of the Olympic Project for Human Rights. He won the bronze medal in the 200 meters race at the 1968 Olympics, where his Black Power salute on the podium with Tommie Smith caused much political controversy. The John Carlos Story is his first book.Dave Zirin is the author of four books, including Bad Sports, A People's History of Sports in the United States, and What's My Name, Fool? He writes the popular weekly online sports column "The Edge of Sports" and is a regular contributor to SportsIllustrated.com, SLAM, Los Angeles Times, and The Nation, where he is the publication's first sports editor.

Long Road to Freedom: The Advocate History of the Gay and Lesbian Movement


Mark Thompson - 1994
    Since 1967 - two years before the Stonewall Riots, usually seen as the beginning of gay liberation - The Advocate has been the nations publication of record for the gay community. From its humble beginnings as a newsletter covering Southern California's homosexual subculture to its prominence today as a newsmagazine read around the world, The Advocate has mirrored the astonishing growth of the community it's served. Now the remarkable history of the modern gay and lesbian movement - a quarter century of rebellion and reform, tragedy and triumph - fills the hundreds of pages of news, photographs, essays, cartoons, and interviews culled from The Advocate. From first-person accounts of the Stonewall Riots to the tragic last day of Harvey Milk's life, from the crisis of AIDS to the controversy over outing, the milestones of the movement are presented as they happened, along with accounts of the lighter side of gay life, from disco divas to the politics of drag. Each year is introduced by a distinguished gay or lesbian historian or movement leader. Martin Duberman, Lillian Faderman, Allan Berube, Felice Picano, Urvashi Vaid, Joan Nestle, John Preston, Torie Osborn, and Randy Shilts are among those interpreting this revolutionary movement that has affected millions of people across the world.

Writing as Witness


Beth Brant - 1994
    Beth Brant put this collection of essays, talks and theory together to convey the message that words are sacred because they come from a place of mystery and give meaning and existence to life.

Queer and Loathing: Rants and Raves of a Raging AIDS Clone


David B. Feinberg - 1994
    . . here's one book that truly deserves a place in a time capsule."--Armistead MaupinThis is as close to the truth as I can get, writes David Feinberg in what he calls his personal Portrait of the Artist as a Young Diseased Jew Fag Pariah. Queer and Loathing is a collection of autobiographical essays, gonzo journalism, and demented Feinbergian lists about AIDS activism and living, writing, and dying with AIDS.

Bridge of Courage: Life Stories of the Guatemalan Companeros & Companeras


Jennifer K. Harbury - 1994
    "A book not only for those interested in Guatamala, but forthose who want to know what makes people give up everything and fight for justice-everywhere"-Margaret Randall.This 2nd edition has an update from the author.[latin america][history][biograp

Chicano Art: Resistance And Affirmation, 1965 1985


Richard Griswold del Castillo - 1994
    

But Is It Art?: The Spirit of Art as Activism


Nina Felshin - 1994
    Art. Activisim. Criticism and Theory. An anthology that explores the rise of activist public art that agitates for social change. Included are discussions of such leading and controversial artists as: the Guerrilla Girls, Gran Fury, Group Material, Women's Action Coalition, and the Artist and Homeless Collaborative.

El Teatro Campesino: Theater in the Chicano Movement


Yolanda Broyles-González - 1994
    This study demythologizes and reinterprets the company's history from its origins in California's farm labor struggles to its successes in Europe and on Broadway until the disbanding of the original collective ensemble in 1980 with the subsequent adoption of mainstream production techniques. Yolanda Broyles-González corrects many misconceptions concerning the Teatro's creation and evolution. She draws from a rich storehouse of previously untapped material, such as interviews with numerous ensemble members, production notes, and unpublished diaries, to highlight the reality of the collective creation that characterized the Teatro's work. Writing within contemporary cultural studies theory, Broyles-González sheds light on class, gender, race, and cultural issues. Her work situates the Teatro within working-class Mexican performance history, the Chicano movement, gender relations, and recent attempts to mainstream.

Ocean Warrior: My Battle to End the Illegal Slaughter on the High Seas


Paul Watson - 1994
    He has stood in the path of oncoming icebreakers to protect seal nurseries, and overturned the law that shielded hunters of baby seals from protest and active intervention to stop slaughter. He is the environmentalist who scathingly referred to Greenpeace, an organization he helped found, as "the Avon ladies of the environmental movement." Now he owns a submarine.Why? Paul Watson's unswerving mission is to publicize -- and stop -- the atrocities committed against the creatures who inhabit the world's oceans.His life story is one of a man with more than the courage of his convictions -- time and time again he has risked his life for his beliefs. He rammed the Sierra, a whaling vessel whose masters illegally slaughtered 25,000 whales; he sailed up to a whale processing plant in the former Soviet Union and calmly snapped photographs when confronted with armed guards; he drove a Cuban fishing boat off the Grand Banks to protect the depleted cod population and he founded the radical and confrontationalist Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, after he became disillusioned with Greenpeace tactics.Ocean Warrior is the story of Paul Watson's conservation career -- an amazing chronicle of bravery, horrifying slaughter and international intrigue. A story of passion and principles, it will not easily be forgotten by anyone who cares about the fate of our oceans -- or our planet.