The most difficult part of the book to write is the acknowledgments. I can’t come close to adequately thanking the many people who provided me invaluable help and support in many ways. And an “Acknowledgments” that even suggested that quantity and quality of assistance would leave the reader wondering why my book is so very far from the Nobel Prize for Literature level. Still, there is a joy in recalling thank-yous, so I’ll do my best.
Terry Bisson, the talented author, generously served as my editor, making a consistent effort to liven-up my writing. Even more importantly, Terry shepherded this project through all the steps to publication and was warm and encouraging throughout the process. Naomi Jaffe did a thorough reading of the draft and offered both detailed commentary and penetrating political perspective. She also read and made helpful suggestions on my re-writes of various sections and has provided astute advice on every aspect of this project. As a number of people have commented to me, “We should all be so lucky as to have the kind of friend Naomi is to you.” Dan Berger, in my opinion the foremost historian of the struggles touched on in this book, contributed a careful vetting and valuable comments on my manuscript. He also did a Herculean amount of fact-checking, although he couldn’t possibly, nor did I ask him to, check every detail. I am fully responsible for all the errors that come with the fallability of memory.
A number of family, friends and correspondents read all or part of the manuscript and offered, some generously despite political differences with some of my interpretations, helpful comments and suggestions. My thanks are mixed with an apology in that the disorganized way in which I work meant that I didn’t fully incorporate many of the good ideas and thoughtful criticisms. Still, their efforts made a big difference: elana levy, Claude Marks, Ken Yale, Callie Williams, Sharon Martinas, Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, Jess Ross, Chris Chanlett, Chesa Boudin, Eleanor Stein, Jeff Jones, Bernardine Dohrn, Bob Feldman, Mindy Stone, B. Loewe, Laura Foner, Vic Dedaj, Papo Torres, Judy Jensen, Simona Sharoni, John Mage, Lenny Weinglass, Moe Stavnezer, Olga Palo. In addition to reading and comments, Walidah Imarisha and Laura Whitehorn contributed, each in her own way, with their enthusiasm and in moving the project forward.
Many people have engaged me in stimulating and useful dialog on the history; here, I will only take space to acknowledge a few, with some of the more extensive exchanges: Molly McClure, Ari Clemenzi, Ty Jarrett, Vicky Daza, Herman Bell, Marilyn Buck, Seth Hayes, Jalil Muntaqim, Nuh Washington, Donna Willmott, Rob McBride, Vicki Legion, Matt Meyer, Meg Starr, Cathy Wilkerson, Becky Thompson, Karl Kersplebedeb, Victor Wallis, Leslie Pickering, Dana Barrett, Ron Grele, Chris Taaffe, Michael Smith, Janet Stavnezer, Marshall Hyman, Helen Hudson, Sara Falconer, Amy Schwartz, karen emily suurtamm, Rick Ayers, Barbara Zeller, Susie Day. Particular recognition goes to Sam Green and Bill Siegel, whose documentary did so much to revive interest in the Weather Underground.
No person is an island, and none of us could be functional, let alone productive, without a lot of support and engagement from others. This reality is several orders of magnitude higher for a prisoner. I’ve been blessed with a bounty of love and support from the outside, and also from many fellow prisoners, beyond anything I could have imagined—people who give me books and publications, healthful foods within the stringent limits of what’s allowed, stimulating political dialog, and lots of love. It would take pages to list all the names, so I won’t try to do so, but I hope that each and every individual involved feels my deep personal gratitude. Within that, there is a small grouping, Friends of David Gilbert (FODG), which has spearheaded work around my legal status, my case, and my prison conditions. A particular thanks in terms of this project goes to FODG West who, without my asking for it, raised money to get the effort to publish this book off the ground. And a broader, heartfelt thanks to the many activists and friends who support the range of prisoners whose incarcerations came out of the struggles for social justice.
Finally, a special lifetime thank-you to Chesa, Kathy, Bernardine, and Bill.