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Review
| David Dellinger: The Life and Times of a Nonviolent Revolutionary, by Andrew E. Hunt. New York: New York University Press, 2006. 346 pages. $34.95, cloth.
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| Students and teachers interested in learning more about the role of pacifists and the peace movement in 20th Century America should read this book. It is the story of the conversion of a "Christian socialist" to a "secular anarchist," one who bridged the gap between the Old Left and the New Left. Hunt's book contains thirteen chapters, arranged chronologically, and is based primarily on oral history interviews. One of the author's strongest assets is the ability to interweave his narrative with biographical descriptions of many of the peace movement's most important figures and their efforts to prevent war in the name of peace and justice. All familiar bases of peace history are covered in this biography. Hunt nicely balances Dellinger's personal family struggles with the demands placed upon him as a peace and justice activist. There are times, Hunt suggests, when Dellinger's family demands seriously interfered with his ability to assume an even greater role in the antiwar movement. The author is most effect in demonstrating how Dellinger rose from a relatively obscure position as writer and editor for antiwar magazines like Direct Action and Liberation in the 1940s and '50s to national prominence as a result of his 1969 trial for conspiracy to disrupt the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago—the high point in his antiwar activism. |
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Hunt's conventional biography traces Dellinger's life from his well-to-do beginnings in Wakefield, Massachusetts (his father was a wealthy Republican attorney in Boston), to his conversion to pacifism while studying at Yale, to his imprisonment for refusing to register for the draft during World War Two, and, finally, to his increasingly direct acts of civil disobedience during the Vietnam War which ultimately defined his importance in the peace movement. According to Hunt, it was Dellinger's open advocacy of acts of retaliation that garnered him a large audience among New Left radicals: hence the subtitle, "nonviolent revolutionary." Between 1968 and 1970, Dellinger was a leading spokesman for the antiwar movement. Although Dellinger would remain active in peace causes until three years before his death in 2004 from Alzheimer's disease, Hunt is correct in noting that his role was limited and, at times, inconsequential. |
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It is clear from reading this book that Hunt is enamored with his subject. While attempts are made to point out Dellinger's shortcomings as leader and strategist, especially the observations by colleagues Sid Peck and Brad Lyttle (pp. 203–205) and Hunt's own critique of the October 1967 march on the Pentagon (pp. 172–180), the author's sympathies are obvious. That aside, what begins to emerge, and Hunt is on point, is that the truth about Dellinger "rests in the contradictions of his life" (p. 3). In trying to present a balanced, yet critical, account, Hunt does offer up this caveat: Dellinger was "a rigid Gandhian and an 'ideologically flexible' supporter of violent revolutionary movements overseas; a methodical coalition organizer and a stubborn sectarian; a tremendously gifted writer, and a wordy political hack" (p. 3). There are, however, some larger questions I wish Hunt had addressed. How did Dellinger feel about the failure of the peace and freedom movements to establish a united front against the Vietnam War? Dellinger's reactions to government efforts to infiltrate and discredit antiwar efforts are another aspect in need of more analysis. Why are peace movements less successful, despite unpopular wars, when the cultural forces of nationalism and patriotism kick in? This remains an important area of investigation that students and teachers need to know more about. |
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But perhaps the most important question of all is how effective a leader was Dellinger? One critic referred to him as "the Kilroy of radical politics," one who came to all the big demonstrations but did little else. In the long run, did Dellinger's individualistic temperament mitigate against his effectiveness? Pacifists, such as Dellinger, are innately individualistic. Their inability to transform personal judgments into collective action remains the greatest challenge to establishing a politics of pacifism. It was Dellinger's own warning to his followers to distrust all leaders that speaks volumes. Readers should know just how Dellinger defined leadership. Did he consider himself a leader or participant? Nevertheless, those interested in peace and antiwar movements should read Hunt's book. This biography highlights the perils of dissent during a period when peace and justice activists challenged the nation's imperial ascendancy during the Cold War years. |
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| Molloy College |
Charles F. Howlett |
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