The Fifties: An Underground History

James R Gaines

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Language: English

Published by Simon & Schuster, 2022

1439101639 / 9781439101636

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Seller: World of Books (was SecondSale), Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.World of Books (was SecondSale)

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A bold and original argument that upends the myth of the Fifties as a decade of conformity to celebrate the solitary, brave, and stubborn individuals who pioneered the radical gay rights, feminist, civil rights, and environmental movements, from historian James R. Gaines.In a fascinating and beautifully written series of character portraits, The Fifties invokes the accidental radicals?people motivated not by politics but by their own most intimate conflicts?who sparked movements for change in their time and our own. Among many others, we meet the legal pathfinder Pauli Murray, who was tortured by both her mixed-race heritage and her ?in between? sexuality. Through years of hard work and self-examination, she turned her demons into historic victories. Ruth Bader Ginsberg credited her for the argument that made sex discrimination illegal, but that was only one of her gifts to 21st-century feminism. We meet Harry Hay, who dreamed of a national gay-rights movement as early as the mid-1940s, a time when the US, Soviet Union, and Nazi Germany viewed gay people as subversives and mentally ill. And in perhaps the book?s unlikeliest pairing, we hear the prophetic voices of Silent Spring?s Rachel Carson and MIT?s preeminent mathematician, Norbert Wiener, who from their very different perspectives?she in the living world, he in the theoretical one?converged on the then-heretical idea that our mastery over the natural world carried the potential for disaster. Their legacy is the environmental movement. The Fifties is a dazzling and provocative work of history that transforms our understanding of a seemingly staid decade and honors the pioneers of gay rights, feminism, civil rights, and environmentalism. The book carries the powerful message that change actually begins not in mass movements and new legislation but in the lives of de-centered, often lonely individuals, who learn to fight for change in a daily struggle with themselves.…

Seller Inventory # 00103695417

Title
The Fifties: An Underground History
Author
James R Gaines
Publisher
Simon & Schuster
Publication year
2022
Condition
Good
Binding
Hardback
Language
English
ISBN 10
1439101639
ISBN 13
9781439101636

World of Books (was SecondSale)

Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.

5-star seller

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Founded in 2002, World of Books is a leading online destination for buying and selling both preloved and new books, committed to making sustainable reading accessible to all. With a mission to help people read more and waste less, World of Books offers a huge range of affordable, high-quality books — giving both new and preloved titles a second life. The company also operates World of Books – Sell Your Books, an easy-to-use platform that allows customers to trade in unwanted books for cash, helping to keep books in circulation while promoting sustainability. As a Certified B Corp, World of Books is driven by a vision to become the world’s largest and most sustainable dedicated online bookstore. The company measures its success through the positive environmental impact it creates, the value it provides to customers, and its ability to operate profitably while supporting its sustainable mission …

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