REBELS AGAINST WAR: The American Peace Movement, 1941-1960

by Lawrence S. Wittner ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 1, 1969

The magazine urged ""strikes. . . rent evasion. . . radical banditry. . . a mass invasion of A&P supermarkets"" by the poor. Rat, 1969? No; Direct Action, 1945, a publication of American pacifists, then in an anarchist phase, and just learning how to be a political rather than a merely moral force. This transition is the theme of Professor Wittner's book, the first study dealing with the radical peace movement after the '30's. Drawing on the untapped files of groups like the War Resister's League and the Catholic Workers, and on personal interviews, the author narrates the movement's history and analyzes influences favorable (Gandhi, Hiroshima, Vietnam) and unfavorable (Pearl Harbor, Vietnam) to its growth. Particularly interesting is the stress on the pacifist ancestry of direct action techniques. The author leaves unanswered a basic question: why did the radicals fail to win the American people to genuine opposition to war and militarism? (The movement's sole triumph, the nuclear test ban treaty, was engineered by moderates and enacted under the gun.) He also fails to clarify distinctions between the various elements--pacifists, socialists, liberals--who at various times found shelter in the movement. No doubt these issues will be pursued by others who follow up this competent, scholarly introduction.

Pub Date: June 1, 1969

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Columbia University Press

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1969

Categories: NONFICTION