The Radical Reader

A Documentary History of the American Radical Tradition

Edited by Timothy Patrick McCarthy and John McMillian

With a foreword by Eric Foner

paperback

$24.95 / £12.95

Radicalism is as American as apple pie. One can scarcely imagine what American society would look like without the abolitionists, feminists, socialists, union organizers, civil-rights workers, gay and lesbian activists, and environmentalists who have fought stubbornly to breathe life into the promises of freedom and equality that lie at the heart of American democracy.

The first anthology of its kind, The Radical Reader brings together more than 200 primary documents in a comprehensive collection of the writings of America’s native radical tradition. Spanning the time from the colonial period to the twenty-first century, the documents have been drawn from a wealth of sources—speeches, manifestos, newspaper editorials, literature, pamphlets, and private letters. From Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense” to Kate Millett’s “Sexual Politics,” these are the documents that sparked, guided, and distilled the most influential movements in American history. Brief introductory essays by the editors provide a rich biographical and historical context for each selection included.

John McMillian teaches history and literature at Harvard University. His articles and review essays have appeared in Radical History Review; Rethinking History; American Quarterly; and elsewhere. He is co-editor, with Paul Buhle, of The New Left Re-examined (Temple University Press). Timothy Patrick McCarthy teaches history and literature at Harvard University, where he has won several teaching awards. He is co-editor, with John Stauffer, of Millennial Vistas: Reconsiderations of American Abolitionism (The New Press).