Dan Berger is an associate professor of comparative ethnic studies at the University of Washington Bothell. In addition to The Struggle Within, his books include Captive Nation: Black Prison Organizing in the Civil Rights Era, Rethinking the American Prison Movement, and Remaking Radicalism: A Grassroots Documentary Reader of the United States, 1973-2001. His writings can be found in Black Perspectives, Jacobin, Truthout, and elsewhere. A longtime activist, Berger is a cofounder of Decarcerate PA and a coordinator of the Washington Prison History Project.
Praise
The Struggle Within: Prisons, Political Prisoners, and Mass Movements in the United States
SKU: 9781604869552
Author: Dan Berger • Foreword by Ruth Wilson Gilmore • Afterword by dream hampton
Publisher: PM Press/Kersplebedeb
ISBN: 9781604869552
Published: 4/2014
Format: Paperback, ePub, mobi, PDF
Size: 5.5 x 8.5
Page count: 128
Subjects: Politics-Activism/History-US/Prison Abolition
Praise
“The Struggle Within powerfully demonstrates that the issue
of political prisoners is not about individuals but about the deep and
enduring bonds of community resistance. Berger’s beautiful synthesis of
more than fifty years of people’s history places the prison at the
center of contemporary freedom struggles. This book is necessary reading
for all who wish to revive a radical tradition in the face of the
prison’s coercive attempt at erasure. The Struggle Within is a vital and moving contribution, rooted in the power of collective history.“
—Angela Y. Davis, author and former political prisoner
“Before the U.S. had today’s mass incarceration, it had political
prisoners. Dan Berger’s excellent book shows how political repression
produced the human rights nightmare that exists today in America’s
prisons. More, the book tells the history of the hundreds of activists
who have been incarcerated here—and most important of all, the stories
of those who remain inside. This historical account tells the truth not
only about political incarceration but also about how movements can act
to dismantle the U.S. prison nation. Wherever you find your place in
social justice activism, this much-needed book will help enrich your
work and make it more effective.“
—Laura Whitehorn, former political prisoner and editor of The War Before
“Dan Berger has provided scholars and activists alike an untold and
unfortunately too easily forgotten history of political incarceration
and the struggle to free political prisoners in the U.S. Berger deftly
grapples not only with the resilience of the incarcerated and the
movements seeking their freedom, but more importantly with the roots of
political incarceration in modern colonialism and its primary
justification—racism. More than stirring our hearts and minds, this
timely book should move us to action!“
—José López, executive director of the Puerto Rican Cultural Center
“When the radical New Left crashed and burned, most participants
resumed more or less conventional life trajectories. We too often forget
that many of our brothers and sisters are still behind bars with no
assurance of release. In The Struggle Within we are told about
not only Mumia Abu-Jamal and Leonard Peltier but dozens of other
political prisoners whose names we may not know. These men and women
’raised the stakes’ in confrontation with the Powers That Be and are
behind bars not just for their ideas but because they were ’active
participants in resistance movements.’ The author describes this book as
an ’introductory and incomplete sketch,’ but it is, in fact, the most
comprehensive survey of imprisoned Movement activists known to me. I
deeply admire the author’s efforts to tell it like it is without
excessive adjectives. While these souls are imprisoned, we are not
free.“
—Staughton Lynd, author, educator, prison activist
“This vital piece connects not only an insightful academic reflection
with lessons which radical movements would do well to learn, it
connects past history with current realities in the service of a more
just future. All intellectual pursuits should be so rooted in the
service of building campaigns and organizations for the people’s
liberation; Berger’s must-read book is a gift to social change activists
everywhere.“
—Matt Meyer, coeditor of We Have Not Been Moved: Resisting Racism and Militarism in 21st Century America
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Reviews
- Reverberations of Underground Activism
- The Struggle Within in Radical Criminology Journal
- Activist scholar Dan Berger
- “Government’s Arsenal to Destroy Revolutionaries”: Political Imprisonment Persists
Interviews
- Watch David Gilbert on a Panel with Monifa Bandele, Terry Bisson, Kenyon Farrow, Matt Meyer, and More
- Activist scholar Dan Berger
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Blog
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