Blood on the tracks : the life and times of S. Brian Willson : a psychohistorical memoir /
S. Brian Willson.
- Oakland, CA : PM Press, c2011.
- xxiv, 441 pages, [64] pages of plates : illustrations (some in color.) ; 23 cm.
The first eight pages contain tributes to the author from a wide range of people from the anti-war and peace movements.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 374-410) and index.
Introduction by Daniel Ellsberg -- Part I All-American: 1 Juy 4, 1941 -- 2 At bat -- 3 Seeking a calling -- 4 Enlisted -- 5 Us and them Part II Pax Americana: 6 In country: Viet Nam -- 7 Letters home -- 8 Conduct unbecoming -- 9 Sent home Part III The criminal injustice system: 10 No, justice -- 11 A caged society -- 12 Back to the land -- 13 Flashback Part IV The United States of America: 14 Without leave -- 15 Becoming a vet -- 16 Dignity trumps longevity -- 17 Fasting for life -- 18 In country: Nicaragua Part V She is me: 19 Blood on the tracks -- 20 "Here comes the train" -- 21 What really happened -- 22 S. Brian Willson, "terrorist" Part VI Third World Legs: 23 Becoming a hero -- 24 Fighting empire in El Salvador -- 25 Coca-Cola Columbia -- 26 Assimilation or elimination Part VII Steady state: 27 Cuba - a special case -- 28 Horizontalism -- 29 Arrowheads -- 30 Zapatistas! an archetype
After serving in the Vietnam War, S. Brian Willson became a radical, nonviolent peace protester and pacifist, and this memoir details the drastic governmental and social change he has spent his life fighting for. Chronicling his personal struggle with a government he believes to be unjust, Willson sheds light on the various incarnations of his protests of the U.S. government, including the refusal to pay taxes, public fasting, and, most famously, public obstruction. On September 1, 1987, Willson was run over by a U.S. government munitions train during a nonviolent blocking action. Willson, who lost his legs in the incident, discusses how the subsequent publicity propelled his cause toward the national consciousness.
9781604864212 9781604864214
2010916475
Willson, S. Brian, 1941-
Pacifists--United States--Biography. Veterans--United States--Biography. Peace movements--United States. Nonviolence--United States. Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Protest movements--United States.