What do you think?
Rate this book
American Patriots: A Short History of Dissent
A concise history that proves that dissent is patriotic
The history of America is a history of dissent. Protests against the British Parliament’s taxation policies led to the American Revolution and the creation of the United States. At the Constitutional Convention the founders put the right to protest in the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights. In the nineteenth century, dissenters protested against the War of 1812 and the Mexican War, they demanded the abolition of slavery, suffrage for women, and fair treatment for workers. In the twentieth century, millions of Americans participated in the Civil Rights Movement, the antiwar movement, and second-wave feminism. In the twenty-first century, hundreds of thousands protested the war in Iraq, joined the 2011 Occupy movement, the 2017 Women’s March, and the 2020 Black Lives Matter uprisings. The crowds grew larger than ever, but the sentiments expressed were familiar. There have been dissenting Americans for as long as there has been an America.
In American Patriots, historian Ralph Young chronicles the key role dissent has played in shaping the United States. He explains that activists are not protesting against America, but pushing the country to live up to its ideals. As he guides the reader through the history of protest, Young considers how ordinary Americans, from moderates to firebrands, responded to injustice. He highlights the work of organizations like SNCC and ACT UP, and he follows iconic individuals like Ida B. Wells-Barnett and Woody Guthrie, charting the impact of their dissent. Some of these protesters are celebrated heroes of American history, while others are ordinary people, frequently overlooked, whose stories show that change is often accomplished through grassroots activism.
Yet not all dissent is equal. In 2021, thousands of rioters stormed the US Capitol, and Americans on both sides of the aisle watched the destruction with horror. American Patriots contrasts this attack with the long history of American protest, and challenges us to explore our definition of dissent. Does it express a legitimate grievance or a smokescreen for undermining democracy? What are the limits of dissent? Where does dissent end and sedition begin?
In a time when legitimate dissent is framed as unpatriotic, Young reminds us of the dissenters who have shaped our country’s history. American Patriots is a necessary defense of our right to demand better for ourselves, our communities, and our nation.
The history of America is a history of dissent. Protests against the British Parliament’s taxation policies led to the American Revolution and the creation of the United States. At the Constitutional Convention the founders put the right to protest in the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights. In the nineteenth century, dissenters protested against the War of 1812 and the Mexican War, they demanded the abolition of slavery, suffrage for women, and fair treatment for workers. In the twentieth century, millions of Americans participated in the Civil Rights Movement, the antiwar movement, and second-wave feminism. In the twenty-first century, hundreds of thousands protested the war in Iraq, joined the 2011 Occupy movement, the 2017 Women’s March, and the 2020 Black Lives Matter uprisings. The crowds grew larger than ever, but the sentiments expressed were familiar. There have been dissenting Americans for as long as there has been an America.
In American Patriots, historian Ralph Young chronicles the key role dissent has played in shaping the United States. He explains that activists are not protesting against America, but pushing the country to live up to its ideals. As he guides the reader through the history of protest, Young considers how ordinary Americans, from moderates to firebrands, responded to injustice. He highlights the work of organizations like SNCC and ACT UP, and he follows iconic individuals like Ida B. Wells-Barnett and Woody Guthrie, charting the impact of their dissent. Some of these protesters are celebrated heroes of American history, while others are ordinary people, frequently overlooked, whose stories show that change is often accomplished through grassroots activism.
Yet not all dissent is equal. In 2021, thousands of rioters stormed the US Capitol, and Americans on both sides of the aisle watched the destruction with horror. American Patriots contrasts this attack with the long history of American protest, and challenges us to explore our definition of dissent. Does it express a legitimate grievance or a smokescreen for undermining democracy? What are the limits of dissent? Where does dissent end and sedition begin?
In a time when legitimate dissent is framed as unpatriotic, Young reminds us of the dissenters who have shaped our country’s history. American Patriots is a necessary defense of our right to demand better for ourselves, our communities, and our nation.
325 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 9, 2024
5 people are currently reading
110 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 26, 2024
Educational and interesting, it would have been even better if I'd had someone with whom to discuss it, specifically my historian, recently gone. Young covers dissent from as long ago as the Boston Tea Party, to events of the last few years. Most I knew of but there were a few I'd never heard of, for example, the Bonus Army of 1932.
As the author reaches his conclusion, he writes: "There are many levels of dissent and many ways that people express that dissent. Most dissent in American history has been nonviolent. Demonstrations, marches, vigils, moratoriums, boycotts, and civil disobedience are all, even when they are disruptive, nonviolent. Sometimes dissenters go beyond nonviolence and commit acts of property destruction such as the 1773 Boston Tea Party or the burning down of a Vail, Colorado ski resort by the Earth Liberation Front in 1998, but it is still dissent. But there are profound differences between dissent and protest, rioting and insurrection, terrorism and revolution. When individuals' lives are threatened, or when they are physically assaulted and murdered, it is no longer dissent. It has reached the threshold of terrorism, insurrection, rebellion. Dissenters are seeking to reform society from within the system; terrorists and revolutionaries are trying to smash the system. Often without any cear idea about the details of setting up a new system to replace the old." p 257
"It has become paintfully apparent... that huge numbers of Americans have at best a superficial understanding of the rich, complex history of this country. This is a problem that needs to be addressed because the key to a functioning, flourishing democracy is an informed electorate. It is the duty of all of us to study the past, to learn how to separate myth from reality, and acquire a deeper understanding of the nuances and complexities of our history, think historically and cultivate the insight that we are the sum total of the agonies and ecstasies, the failures and triumphs of the past. How else can we understand the present? Or have a vision for the future?" p 259-260
As the author reaches his conclusion, he writes: "There are many levels of dissent and many ways that people express that dissent. Most dissent in American history has been nonviolent. Demonstrations, marches, vigils, moratoriums, boycotts, and civil disobedience are all, even when they are disruptive, nonviolent. Sometimes dissenters go beyond nonviolence and commit acts of property destruction such as the 1773 Boston Tea Party or the burning down of a Vail, Colorado ski resort by the Earth Liberation Front in 1998, but it is still dissent. But there are profound differences between dissent and protest, rioting and insurrection, terrorism and revolution. When individuals' lives are threatened, or when they are physically assaulted and murdered, it is no longer dissent. It has reached the threshold of terrorism, insurrection, rebellion. Dissenters are seeking to reform society from within the system; terrorists and revolutionaries are trying to smash the system. Often without any cear idea about the details of setting up a new system to replace the old." p 257
"It has become paintfully apparent... that huge numbers of Americans have at best a superficial understanding of the rich, complex history of this country. This is a problem that needs to be addressed because the key to a functioning, flourishing democracy is an informed electorate. It is the duty of all of us to study the past, to learn how to separate myth from reality, and acquire a deeper understanding of the nuances and complexities of our history, think historically and cultivate the insight that we are the sum total of the agonies and ecstasies, the failures and triumphs of the past. How else can we understand the present? Or have a vision for the future?" p 259-260
October 6, 2024
It was truly an honor to be able to learn from expert historian Dr. Young in a small, seminar-style class at Temple University. I took Honors Protest Music not knowing what to expect as a student who was not majoring in history but lapped up every concept with vigor and enthusiasm. When the semester was over, I was unable to take more classes from Dr. Young due to academic scheduling in my own major, psychology, but was eager to know more.
Reading American Patriots was the perfect layman's overview of dissent in America. Young writes with the careful detail of an expert, but the accessibility of an undergraduate professor. He provides nuance and context to events the reader vaguely remembers from their high school American history class, placing value on individual agency.
I especially enjoyed chapters 10 and 11: Stimulating Analysis of Dissent and Pseudo Dissent in the past ten years.
Reading American Patriots was the perfect layman's overview of dissent in America. Young writes with the careful detail of an expert, but the accessibility of an undergraduate professor. He provides nuance and context to events the reader vaguely remembers from their high school American history class, placing value on individual agency.
I especially enjoyed chapters 10 and 11: Stimulating Analysis of Dissent and Pseudo Dissent in the past ten years.
July 17, 2023
I'd describe this as a new narrative of known knowledge. I've read Young's previous work, but this updated version focuses a lot on the late 20th and early 21st centuries. It's very readable for students, is more direct than the unabridged earlier version. Young does a great job focusing on the agency of individuals and the power they have to shape the world and society around them (an important lesson for students of any age)
I really liked the coverage of the Red Scare and the counterculture. Father Berrigan's appearance was appreciated; I feel he's overlooked in social history. Young also pays equal respect to BLM, the Tea Party, and Occupy Wall Street. The chapter on civil rights forced me reconsider the role of the movement
I really liked the coverage of the Red Scare and the counterculture. Father Berrigan's appearance was appreciated; I feel he's overlooked in social history. Young also pays equal respect to BLM, the Tea Party, and Occupy Wall Street. The chapter on civil rights forced me reconsider the role of the movement
December 20, 2023
American Patriots by Ralph Young is a delight to read. Much of this history you may already have some knowledge of but this is a very broad and compelling read. I highly suggest anyone with a desire to know the history of one of America's favorite past times, protesting and making changes happen, should read this book.
December 31, 2023
The United States was formed through dissent and its path to progress has ebbed and flowed based on the dissent of citizens. The more recent episodes of dissent felt rushed in comparison to those events from the more distant past; however, this remains a fantastic look at the importance of being aware and involved. Thanks to the publisher and Edelweiss for an advance digital review copy.
March 30, 2024
If you read history at all, there probably isn't much here that you don't already know. But it is interesting to see that some things have never really changed and history repeats itself. It is also helpful to know that many things became possible because people stood up for their rights.
March 14, 2024
Excellent historical account of various protest movements in the US, starting in the colonial era but concentrating mostly in the past 100 years.
November 5, 2024
Clearly, Americans dissent. From our earliest days, through RBG’s famous collar that she wore when the Court announced decisions in which she dissented, dissent is wholly American. Yet how we dissent, what it means, and how it affects us - individually and as a whole - has taken on different looks, sounds, and feels as we moved through time. This book takes us throughout major movements in history where dissent played a role (so pretty much through all of history). Chapter by chapter discussions on the push for unions and protections for workers, the Great Migration and the efforts for racial justice in different periods, anti-war movements (for alllll the wars), civil rights, and more, give the reader a general history lesson while exploring what dissent looked like in each era. Once we get into the 20th century, each chapter addresses a different decade, talking about the political sphere, general protests, and how dissent was expressed through art, music, and literature. A very interesting read!
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews