The Whole World Is Watching: Who Makes History?

Finally… a smart critique of By the Light of Burning Dreams from the left. Jonah Raskin’s review of the new book about the radical upheavals of the 1960s and ‘70s by my sister Margaret and me is well worth reading — even if I strongly disagree with its major thrust. Raskin — a fellow veteran of the New Left — insists on calling the book’s focus on radical leaders a “celebrity” fixation. He would rather focus on the street soldiers who made the “second American Revolution,” as Margaret and I call it. Raskin does concede that we also tell the stories of relative unknowns like Heather Booth, Bill Zimmerman, Craig Rodwell and Madonna Thunder Hawk. But it’s true that we mostly focused on the celebrated — and targeted — leaders of the Black Panthers, United Farm Workers, American Indian Movement and other radical organizations. Because, as we write in the book, while Margaret and I don’t subscribe to the “great man” theory of history, we do believe in the essential role of visionary, brave leadership.

Yes, the leaders we write about could not have made history without the countless foot soldiers who followed them. But the political and social advances of the ‘60s and ‘70s would also never have been possible without the galvanizing effect of courageous leaders. Yes, they were flawed human beings — and we don’t ignore their manifold imperfections and mistakes. And yet, as we write, the “legacy” of leaders like Bobby Seale, Cesar Chavez, Dolores Huerta, Tom Hayden, Jane Fonda, Dennis Banks, Russell Means etc. is “immense.” To make deep and lasting change, we need the intricate interplay between mass movements and brilliant, accountable leaders. Today’s activists ignore this lesson at their own peril.