Promotional Information

Historian and civil rights activist proves how progressive movements can flourish even in conservative times.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION
History Lessons

CHAPTER 1
Franklin D. Roosevelt and the March on Washington Movement

CHAPTER 2
The Movement Against the Vietnam War

CHAPTER 3
Winning While Losing: Fighting the Reagan Administration

CHAPTER 4
The Free South Africa Movement

CHAPTER 5
A “Kinder and Gentler” Presidency: George Herbert Walker Bush

CHAPTER 6
The Adaptable President: William Jefferson Clinton

CHAPTER 7
Unnatural Disasters: The Presidency of George W. Bush

CONCLUSION
Lessons Learned

Acknowledgments
Notes
Index

About the Author

Dr. Mary Frances Berry is the Geraldine R. Segal Professor of American Social Thought and professor of history at the University of Pennsylvania. She is former chairwoman of the US Commission on Civil Rights, an Honorary Fellow of the American Society for Legal History, the author of twelve books, and the recipient of thirty-five honorary degrees. Dr. Berry has appeared on Real Time with Bill Maher, The Daily Show, Tavis Smiley, PBS NewsHour, and various MSNBC and CNN shows.

Reviews

“A well-informed handbook of effective resistance.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“Berry effectively combines her roles as historian and activist to show how previous achievements of social justice were won and to encourage future activists.”
—Publishers Weekly

“Mary Frances Berry’s History Teaches Us to Resist could not have arrived at a better moment . . . . Berry reminds us that in learning from the past and building on it, we should not hold our breaths but always hold out hope.”
—Black Perspectives

“This is a superb essay on the role of activism during times that the political climate did not favor reform . . . written with flair and immediacy.”
—CHOICE

“Dr. Mary Frances Berry provides an essential book for our troubled times and reminds us that ‘past is prologue.’ Every progressive activist and lawyer will want to pore over the engrossing behind-the-scenes details of the accounts in this book to learn how activists navigated reactionary periods in American political life. History Teaches Us to Resist is an encouraging reminder that, with strategic discipline, progressives have always found creative ways to advance the work of justice and equality—even in the worst of times.”
—Sherrilyn Ifill, president and director-counsel, NAACP Legal Defense Fund

“As every day brings more news of the Trump administration’s unprecedented assaults on democracy, millions of Americans veer between the horror of utter defeat and magical thinking that our institutions will save us. In her characteristic no-nonsense style, Mary Frances Berry teaches us that power is never absolute and that democracy is not self-correcting. With a historian’s field of vision and a veteran activist’s understanding of tactics and strategy, Berry excavates how resistance to some of the most powerful men in modern America shaped the freedom struggles that have benefited us all—and in so doing provides a crucial road map for the work that lies ahead.”
—Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw

“At this excruciating moment of crisis and looming catastrophe, Mary Frances Berry reminds us that our most powerful weapon in the struggle ahead is simply us. This is a book of hard-won lessons and real inspiration, something to read and then keep in your backpack for ready reference as we take to the streets and mobilize to storm the heavens.”
—William Ayers, author of “You Can’t Fire the Bad Ones!” and 18 Other Myths About Teachers, Teachers’ Unions, and Public Education

“A powerful, timely, and necessary read about resistance during hostile times.”
—Dante Barry, cofounder and executive director, Million Hoodies Movement for Justice

“I can imagine no one more qualified than Dr. Mary Frances Berry to write this crucially needed and powerful book. As an award-winning historian, as someone with firsthand experience serving in multiple presidential administrations, and as an activist for over fifty years in movements ranging from civil rights and anti–Vietnam War protest to Free South Africa and LGBTQ rights, to name a few, Berry has exceptional experience and vital knowledge about creating resistance movements. We need to listen, learn, and act.”
—Anthony D. Romero, executive director, American Civil Liberties Union