Date: Wed, 09 May 2007 16:22:01 -0700 From: Skylight Books <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: History of free speech book at Skylight Books in Los Angeles on May 17
re: Chris Finan, author of "From the Palmer Raids to the Patriot Act: A History of the Fight for Free Speech in America" (Beacon Press) Thursday, May 17 at 7:30 pm at Skylight Books in Los Angeles Hi, I'm sending this email to request that you help us spread the word to interested friends and associates (and related press) about this important event. We would love to give Chris a great Los Angeles turnout, as he has been a real leader in free speech issues and this book is an unprecedented history of free speech. It should lead to a lively discussion. Don't hesitate to call me with any questions. Thanks so much! Best regards, Kerry Slattery, General Manager Skylight Books (in Los Feliz) 1818 N Vermont Ave (between Hollywood Blvd & Franklin) Los Angeles, CA 90027 store (323) 660-1175 cell (323) 719-0465 www.skylightbooks.com CHRIS FINAN FINAN Thursday, May 17 at 7:30 pm From the Palmer Raids to the Patriot ACT: A History of the Fight for Free Speech in America (Beacon Press) Why does a right guaranteed in the First Amendment always need to be so fiercely defended? This new history takes a look at the various fights over free speech in America, from the early 20th century to today's "patriotic" censorship. Chris Finan is the President of the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression and the Chair of the National Coalition Against Censorship. About the book: After Upton Sinclair, famed author of The Jungle, was arrested for reading the First Amendment on Liberty Hill in 1923, The Nation commented: " When we contemplate the antics of the chief of police of Los Angeles, we are deterred from characterizing him as an ass only through fear that such a comparison would lay us open to damages from every self-respecting donkey." In this lively history of our most fundamental and perhaps most vulnerable right, Chris Finan traces the lifeline of free speech from the War on Terror back to the turn of the last century. During the YMCA' s 1892 Suppression of Vice campaign, muttonchopped moralist Anthony Comstock railed against writings by that " Irish smut dealer" George Bernard Shaw. In the midst of the country' s first Red Scare, the government rounded up thousands of Russian Americans for deportation during the Palmer raids. Decades later, a second Red Scare gripped the country as Senator Joseph McCarthy spearheaded a witch-hunt for " egg-sucking liberals" who defended " Communists and queers." Finan' s dramatic review of such touchstones as the Scopes trial and Edward R. Murrow' s challenge to Joseph McCarthy are revelatory; many of his narratives are entirely fresh and have as much relevance to our post-PATRIOT Act world as his final chapter on the twenty-first century. The story of the fight for free speech, in times of war and peace when writers, publishers, booksellers, and librarians are often on the front lines is essential reading. "Christopher Finan has given us a marvelously readable account of the struggle for free speech in the United States. Beginning with the birth of the American civil liberties movement during World War I, Finan traces the often grueling battles over free speech in wartime, book censorship, McCarthyism, and freedom of the press that have marked the gradual evolution of American freedom. It is a story every American should know, for it is our nation's greatest achievement." Geoffrey R. Stone, author of Perilous Times: Free Speech in Wartime from The Sedition Act of 1798 to The War on Terrorism "The Founding Fathers gave us the First Amendment, but we have had to fight for free speech. Radicals, reactionaries, feminists, religious zealots, African Americans, Klansmen, college students, even schoolchildren, have played a role in expanding free speech. They are all present in Chris Finan's colorful narrative, which shows how much progress we have made-and how far we have to go." Nadine Strossen, President of the American Civil Liberties Union and Professor of Law, New York Law School " In this masterful work, Chris Finan deftly chronicles the challenges to free speech in the twentieth century; an accessible, thought provoking history that not only informs, but also engages the reader." Joyce Meskis, Owner, Tattered Cover Book Store, Denver "Concisely detailed and researched, From the Palmer Raids to the Patriot Act reads like high powered fiction. Characters as diverse as Roger Baldwin, Bernie Sanders, Allen Ginsberg, Fatty Arbuckle, Jane Russell, Anthony Comstock, John Ashcroft and Dwight Eisenhower share the stage to tell the tale of a nation at odds with its Puritan heritage. A timely addition to bookshelves as the United States wrestles with issues of privacy and personal freedoms in an age of terrorism tied to an unpopular war." Kenton Oliver, Intellectual Freedom Committee Chair, the American Library Association " American history is marred by recurrent episodes of hate Red scares, super-patriotism, fear of sexual expression. Christopher Finan brilliantly paints that record, and shows how courageous Americans have fought for freedom." Anthony Lewis, author of Gideon's Trumpet and Make No Law "At a time when America' s freedoms and liberties are under attack in Washington, Finan' s book is a powerful reminder of why we must carry on the fight to preserve the central underpinning of the American democratic system the right to free and uncensored discourse." Senator Bernie Sanders Chris Finan is the president of the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression and the chair of the National Coalition Against Censorship. He is also the author of Alfred E. Smith: The Happy Warrior. Finan lives in Brooklyn, New York. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- LAAMN: Los Angeles Alternative Media Network --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Unsubscribe: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subscribe: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Digest: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Help: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Post: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Archive1: <http://www.egroups.com/messages/laamn> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Archive2: <http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yahoo! 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