Recommended Reading: Saul Alinsky, The American Organizer

National Education Association (NEA) Website ^ | Not Posted | National Education Association

[EagleUSA]

Rules for Radicals by Saul Alinsky Vintage; Reissue edition (October 23, 1989) Buy It

An inspiration to anyone contemplating action in their community! And to every organizer!

Saul Alinsky wrote the book on American radicalism - two books, in fact: a 1945 best-seller, "Reveille for Radicals" and "Rules for Radicals" in 1971. The "Reveille" title page quotes Thomas Paine... "Let them call me rebel and welcome, I feel no concern from it; but I should suffer the misery of devils, were I to make a whore of my soul."

Saul Alinsky, who was a labor and civil-rights activist from the 1910's until he died in 1972, has written here a guidebook for those who are out to change things. He sets down what the goal is: a society where people are free to live, and also aren't starving in the streets. A society where there is legal and economic justice. Then he sets out to say how to get there.

Alinsky spends a lot of time critiquing the idea that "The end does not justify the means." What end? What means? He feels that there are circumstances where one can and should use means that in other circumstances would be unethical. I am not sure I agree, but Alinsky certainly speaks with the voice of experience.

Alinsky's goal seems to be to encourage positive social change by equipping activists with a realistic view of the world, a kind of preemptive disillusionment. If a person already knows what evil the world is capable of, then perhaps the surprise factor can be eliminated, making the person a more effective activist. Alinsky further seems to be encouraging the budding activist not to worry to much about getting his or her hands dirty. It's all a part of the job, he seems to say.

[EagleUSA]

Here, taken from the website of the UNION that has a stranglehold on government education, is the RECOMMENDED reading for teachers of our children. Clearly to influence the radicalization of our children and to encourage militant socialism in the minds of our children through the ciriculum of our schools. Ala Obama.

[who_would_fardels_bear]

One of the reasons for reading "Rules For Radicals" is to find out how quickly businesses responded to the 60's protestors' tactics.

Alinsky brings up several examples in the book of how corporations redesigned their lobbies and the fronts of their buildings to make sit-ins difficult or impossible and to discourage protests in general.

The tactics Alinksy advocates in the book are actually counter-tactics to the tactics corporations had developed in response to the first wave of protestors.

Since then corporations have gotten even smarter and have pretty much turned sit-ins and protests into meaningless street theatre.

After all, how successful have the unions been over the past couple of decades?