Direct Action: Protest and the Reinvention of American Radicalism

Author(s): L. A. Kauffman

Politics

From environmentalists chaining themselves to logging equipment to global justice activists blockading the World Trade Organization summit to police brutality protesters shutting down freeways, direct action has been central to radical activism in the United States for the last forty years. This compact history examines the evolution of disruptive protest to tell a larger story about the reshaping of American radicalism. Revealing deep connections between movements usually viewed in isolation, and the central role of feminist and queer practice in revitalizing radical organizing, this book uncovers how groups from ACT UP to Occupy to Black Lives Matter have catalyzed change. No other book has surveyed post-60s left activism with such breadth. Propelled by dozens of interviews with movement-makers, this pithy and engrossing history is for anyone who wants to understand how protest movements erupt-and how they can succeed.


Product Information

L.A. Kauffman has spent more than thirty years immersed in radical movements and has written about grassroots activism and social movement history for publications such as the Nation, n+1, and many other outlets.

General Fields

  • : 9781784784096
  • : Verso Books
  • : Verso Books
  • : 0.367
  • : January 2017
  • : United Kingdom
  • : January 2017
  • : books

Special Fields

  • : L. A. Kauffman
  • : Paperback
  • : 322.40973
  • : 208