Patriots Act
by Bill Katovsky
Summary
What is the relationship between patriotism and dissent? Why is political dissent often maligned as disloyal and un-American? And what are the risks for speaking out and taking a principled stand? These questions form the backbone of Patriots Act: Voices of Dissent and the Risk of Speaking Out.
Here are interviews with federal whistle-blowers, peace activists, military veterans, members of the media, practitioners of nonviolent civil disobedience, and former high-ranking government officials. Some were publicly vilified…others jeopardized their careers. Several went to jail. They all share a common commitment to speaking the truth.
Excerpt
From the Introduction:
What is the relationship between patriotism and dissent? Is it defined by an uneasy truce? Or is it an inseparable bond, like blood brothers? Because if dissent is part of our nation’s historical DNA, why is political protest often maligned as disloyal and un-American? What must citizens do to reclaim their natural birthright and liberate it from the impoverished language of bumper sticker sentimentality and partisan rancor? What is the price for speaking out and taking a principled stand?
These questions form the backbone of Patriots Act. The book’s purpose is to honor the defenders of our country’s freedoms and civil liberties. Her are interviews with federal whistle blowers, peace activists, military veterans, members of the media, practitioners of nonviolent civil disobedience, and former high-ranking government officials. They represent the many types of protest found in America. These individuals have exercised their rights, resisting censorship and the restriction of free expression--often with surprising results. Some were publicly vilified as a result of their defiance and outspokenness. Others jeopardized their careers. Several went to jail. They have diverse backgrounds and political views--liberal and conservative, young and old, secular and religious-but they all share a common commitment to speaking the truth, regardless of the consequences. The cumulative effect of their oral histories embodies what is very best about our national character. They also show why it’s important to stand vigilant against those who wrap themselves to tightly in our nation’s flag that they can neither see nor hear what others are actually saying.
Little good emerges when citizens are asked to submit to the “you-are-either-for-ur-or-against-us” standard that the White House has wielded as a jingoistic slogan ever since September 11. This loyalty litmus test, while initially lauded for its moral clarity, devolved into a hollow exercise in fear-based consent and phony, grandstanding patriotism. It intimidated the mainstream news media, which failed to ask tough, skeptical questions when the administration ramped up its military plans to invade Iraq. It poisoned the talk show airwaves with sulfurous, hate-filled content. It wakened the resolve on Capitol Hill to conduct a real war-on-terror debate without fear of reprisal at the voting booth. And it gave rise to the politics of personal destruction, which has significantly impacted the electoral landscape….
The nation grows weaker, not stronger, when dissident voices are silenced and civil liberties stripped away. Benjamin Franklin said it best: “Any society that would give up a little liberty to gain a little security will deserve neither and lose both.”
Reviews
A "Book Sense" Notable Pick
"A bracing tribute to those who have risked [much] by acting on their beliefs"--Publishers Weekly
"A bracing tribute to those who have risked [much] by acting on their beliefs"--Publishers Weekly
Author's Biography
Bill Katovsky is the co-author (with Timothy Carlson) of Embedded: The Media at War in Iraq, which won Harvard University’s Goldsmith Book Prize. He lives in northern California.