Description
Book SynopsisIn recent decades, there has been a generational shift of the US veterans'' peace movement, from one grounded mostly in the experiences of older white men of the Vietnam War era, to one informed by a young, diverse cohort of post-9/11 veterans. In Unconventional Combat, Michael A. Messner traces this transformation through the life-history interviews of six veterans of color to show how their experiences of sexual and gender harassment, sexual assault, racist and homophobic abuse during their military service has shaped their political views and action. Drawing upon participant observation with the Veterans For Peace and About Face organizations and interviews with older male veterans as his backdrop, Messner shows how veterans'' military experiences form their collective situated knowledge of intersecting oppressions. This knowledge, Messner argues, further shapes their intersectional praxis, which promises to transform the veterans'' peace movement and potentially link their anti-mil
Trade Review(The Book) provide(s) insight into their efforts for peace, racial equality, and the LGBT+ movement. * E. Hannel, CHOICE Connect, Vol. 59 No. 8 *
Veterans of any war in any country are intersectionally gendered. Michael Messner has listened carefully to 6 American recent veterans whose experiences and ideas are rarely heard. He has thus drawn back the curtain both on today's US military's misogynist and racialized culture and on older white male veteran peace activists' difficulty in grasping its implications for them. I'll be thinking about this book for a long time. * Cynthia Enloe, author of Nimo's War, Emma's War: Making Feminist Sense of the Iraq War *
Michael Messner does a beautiful job of thinking deeply about the interconnectedness of race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality and social class as they affect the standpoint and experiences of young activists. His book offers something really substantial to the study of intersectionality and social movements, and it's a wonderful contribution to these fields of study. * Mignon R. Moore, Columbia University *
A groundbreaking analysis of veterans and the peace movement, Messner focuses on a young generation outside of the heterosexual, white male norm in the military. Told through compelling narratives and an intersectional lens, this is an important book for anyone interested in the complications of serving in the military and then coming to seek an end to war. * Jo Reger, Professor of Sociology, Oakland University *
Table of ContentsPrologue Chapter 1: Action at intersections: Wars, militarization, and veterans' peace movements INTERLUDE 1: "It was all men." Chapter 2: "I was in unconventional combat": Intersectional pathways through the military INTERLUDE 2: Guys being guys Chapter 3: "Rip off the band-aid": A new generation confronts the veterans' peace movement INTERLUDE 3: "We cannot stand in fear" Chapter 4: "Connecting the dots": From silos to intersectional coalitions INTERLUDE 4: "Say it, mean it, and do something about it." Chapter 5: "You've got to do something radical": Intersectional praxis in social movements Appendix I: Methodological Appendix: Centering Intersectional Standpoints List of References Notes Appendix
