Synopses & Reviews
Mixing aspects of social, political, and institutional history, authors Athan and Jeanne Theoharis survey the quest for equal rights and social justice in the last half-century. This text shows how individuals have sought to affect civil rights and liberties at the grassroots level, and how government has reacted to these individuals' attempts to affect change. In particular, the authors discuss the problematic status of civil liberties, civil rights, and civil dissent during the Cold War era--providing a vital, critical insight into post-1945 politics. This volume is part of the AMERICA SINCE 1945 series--a collection of brief texts that seek to define the ways in which the United States has changed in the last 50 years.
Review
"On the whole, I think the manuscript is very strong on civil rights and certain aspects of civil liberties, is good on race and gender. ... One strength is in its use of quotes from people involved. ... Another strength is certainly the inclusion of a wide range of movements and issues including sexuality and sexual orientation as related to McCarthyism and questions of civil rights and civil liberties. ... The author performs a valuable service by tying together developments that are often treated separately or not at all. The treatment of gender is especially noteworthy."
About the Author
Jeanne Theoharis, is an assistant professor in the department of African studies at Brooklyn College. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Michigan and held a two-year appointment as visiting assistant professor at Michigan. She has written numerous articles on the civil rights movement in the North and South and the politics of race in contemporary America, and is co-editing FREEDOM NORTH: CIVIL RIGHTS STRUGGLES OUTSIDE OF THE SOUTH, 1940-1980 with Komozi Woodard and Matthew Countryman, to be published in the fall. Athan Theoharis is a professor of history at Marquette University, a specialist on twentieth-century U.S. history with a particular research interest in McCarthyism, federal surveillance policy, and the FBI. He has published extensively and has been the recipient of numerous research grants and awards. His most recent publications have focused on the FBI.
Table of Contents
I. 1945-1960. 1. The Emergence of a New Civil Rights Movement. 2. The Cold War and the Decline of Dissent. II. 1960-1973. 3. A Mass Movement for Civil Rights. 4. Is This America? Civil Rights and the Nation. 5. Radical Movements and the Backlash Against Civil Rights. 6. The Rise of Dissent. III. 1973-2000. 7. New Social Movements and Post-Civil Rights Politics. 8. A New Politics of Dissent and Privacy Rights. Conclusion. Bibliography. Index.