Tom Porter

Great Moments in Dissent: the Art of the Eloquent No Tom Porter

Great Moments in Dissent: The Art of the Eloquent No is an assemblage of twenty-four bold protests against social norms not accustomed to being questioned. Included are some lesser-known, but no less formidable, works such as Robert Emmet's "Speech Before Lord Norbury," Frederick Douglass' "What to a Slave is the Fourth of July," Rose Schneiderman's response to the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire and Ho Chi Minh's letter to U. S. Secretary of State Robert Lansing after the end of the First World War. While the targets may differ, the dissenters herein share an uncommon felicity of expression that propels these luminaries including Mother Jones, Mahatma Gandhi and Judge John Marshall Harlan to heights of intellectual combat seldom witnessed in recorded history. Together these works constitute an owner's manual for the human mind and serve as a source of inspiration for readers dedicated to elevating an evolving civilization.