Overview

In this spellbinding memoir, Bill Zimmerman relates his many adventures in the civil rights and anti-Vietnam War movements of the sixties and offers invaluable lessons on the art of effective protest for today’s activists. In Troublemaker, Zimmerman vividly describes registering black voters in Mississippi, marching with Martin Luther King, Jr., organizing for the March on the Pentagon, protesting at the Chicago Democratic convention, and flying food to protesting Indians at Wounded Knee. He relates how he abandoned his career as a scientist to prevent military misuse of his research, then smuggled medicines to North Vietnam, established an international charity that rebuilt a Vietnamese hospital bombed by Nixon, and helped lead the grassroots lobbying campaign that finally ended the war. Breaking down the complex strategies and tactics of the antiwar movement, Zimmerman provides an invaluable look at the sixties and its continuing relevance today.

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9780307739506

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Reviews

<p> Remarkable. . . . Activists today will want to read this inspiring story. <br>--Wes Boyd, Co-founder of MoveOn.org <br> A smart, tough, incisive look at the politics of the '60s and how they impact us today. . . . Read it. Then go out and cause trouble. <br>--Robert Greenwald, Producer and Director, Brave New Films <br> A well-written, passionate story of a personal journey through the Vietnam protest era, and a valuable model for progressive activists of our own time. <br>-- The Nation<br> <br> Bill Zimmerman gives the lie to the old saw that if you remember the '60s you weren't there. . . . Zimmerman has written one hell of a page-turner. <br>--Paul Begala, CNN Political Consultant <br> As thrilling as any true-life thriller. . . . At a time when journalists persist in judging the Occupy movement by its easily visible signs and accomplishments of the past hundred days, Troublemaker is a useful reminder of how much of a social movement takes place in a profusion of lives, under the surface, among the unfamous. <br>--Todd Gitlin, The New Republic <br> A riveting book. Bill Zimmerman is a shining example of . . . a patriot his country can count on in dark times. . . . This is an inspiring story of a life committed to a better world. And, what a life! What a story! <br>--Daniel Ellsberg <br> Bill Zimmerman's memoir is a great adventure story. . . . Zimmerman's tales of derring-do are fused with insightful analysis, and a history we thought we knew is retold in surprising and moving ways. <br>--Richard Flacks, Professor of Sociology, University of California, Santa Barbara and Co-founder of Students for a Democratic Society <br> Bill Zimmerman's wise and rollicking chronicle of his contrarian transit across the sixties and early seventies (a sort of cross between Zelig, Zorro, and Zapata) can help explain the political and cultural passions of that era, both to those who lived through them and to their progeny, better than any such tex

<p>Praise for Troublemaker: <br> For almost half a century Bill Zimmerman has labored with intensity for progressive causes as an organizer and political consultant. In this new memoir he looks back on his career with an unwavering commitment to his beliefs and an admirable intellectual toughness and pragmatism.... He has been a key player on dozens of issues including Wounded Knee, Central America, Harold Washington's mayoral campaign and medical marijuana initiatives and fought with MoveOn.org against the Iraq War. His tense and harrowing account of literally risking his life by flying an airplane to drop food to the besieged American Indian Movement at Wounded Knee gives the book a drama not found in typical ideological memoirs... [His] is a unique and strong voice. Troublemaker is a well-written, passionate story of a personal journey through the Vietnam protest era, and a valuable model for progressive activists of our own time. --Danny Goldberg, TheNation.com <br> A

Author Information

Bill Zimmerman, who holds a doctorate in psychology from the University of Chicago, is one of the nation's most experienced political consultants. As cofounder of the leading consulting firm Zimmerman & Markman, whose work for ballot initiatives and for organizations such as the ACLU, NRDC, and MoveOn.org has won multiple awards, he continues to advocate for social justice.

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