Scholar, professor, author, former newspaper reporter, maverick, and an advocate of First ...

204 Pages·2013·1.93 MB·English

by  Marquette Books

“Scholar, professor, author, former newspaper reporter, maverick, and an
advocate of First Amendment rights David Demers has written a
thought-provoking work ... . I very much enjoyed reading this book and was
particularly interested in the author’s description of his fighting for what he
believes in despite the obstacles. I found the discussion of his years in
academia especially fascinating. ... a highly readable and thought-provoking
book.”
–Lucy Heckman, St. John’s University Library, Jamaica, NY
“[Sociologist] C. Wright Mills defined sociology as the study of intersections
between biography and history. By Mills’s definition, this book is sociology par
excellence. It is an exemplar of sociological method. By tracing and reflecting on
his personal initiatives and activities in the twilight decades of the twentieth
century, Demers powerfully illuminates the direction of American society. On
the other hand, The Lonely Activist doesn’t quite fit the bill of sociology. The
prose is too smooth, engaging, and jargon-free. Better to call it social
commentary or first-rate journalism. Whatever it is, read it and learn.”
–Dr. Kenneth Westhues, professor emeritus of sociology, University
of Waterloo, Canada, and expert on workplace mobbing
“I loved every minute of this piece and was fully engaged with it. I found it
beautifully written and very interesting. One thing I really like about this is that
it deals with what could be difficult issues for average readers — philosophy,
law, rights, history — but it is very understandable. I think a person with no
or limited background could enter the work well and understand what [the
author was] talking about. I never felt like [he was] writing over the reader’s
head.”
–Carolyn Walker, Writer’s Digest
“With an approachable and easy style, Dr. Demers uses his life as a means to
examine the history of the various sociological theories and trends that have
shaped our culture to this day. These are supported by extensive research.
Among the many ways Demers tried to reach out beyond ‘the ivory tower’ and
make a difference in the world was by supporting his students in overcoming
obstacles in having their stories published.”
–Nancy Barthelemy, Archivist, Peabody Institute Library, Peabody, MA
“This book is ... incredibly well researched and a very interesting, relevant
story. It was thought-provoking and an unexpected story. My background is
in the social sciences (political science) and I was both shocked and completely
identified with the author’s story. Demers has a great voice and manages to tell
his narrative without sounding holier-than-thou or just someone with a grudge
match.”
–Amada Scott, Librarian, Cambridge Springs Public Library, PA
This book is “part biographical study of his own fight for his First
Amendment rights while working as a college professor and part background
of social science and its application. ... it was very interesting. Mostly I was
reminded of the study that says the more people witnessing a crime, the less
likely someone will help. For instance if a woman is being mugged on the
street and there is one man witnessing it, it is far more likely that he will try to
help her than if a group of people are passing by. .. This book is the story of
a man who comes to help the woman before she knows she’s in trouble.”
–Princess of the Library,
http://princessofthelibrary.wordpress.com/2009/12/23/the-ivory-tower-of-babel
“The author writes in an easy-to-understand style that makes it very readable.”
– Ken Neubeck, Patchogue, NY
This book “questions what role academics plays in the social world to help
‘solve’ societal problems. His passionate commitment to being a proponent of
change emanates off every page as well as his zest for upholding First
Amendment issues. ... Demers fuses so much of his own life experiences into
the reading that one becomes caught up in his academic memoir and learns
much more than anticipated because of how Demers explains everything with
such detail and explication. Well worth reading for those interesting in
journalism, mass communication, and academia. ... The greatest strength of the
book is the passion and questioning Demers has. I believe that this is an
important and relevant look into academic institutions and the responsibilities
they have in their immediate environments and larger communities as well.”
–Anne M. Miskewitch, Librarian, Literature and World Language
Department, Harold Washington Library Center, Chicago, IL

Books in This Series
The Lonely Activist: An American Odyssey, Volume One, “Anatomy of an Activist:
1953-1996” (Summer 2013)
The Lonely Activist: An American Odyssey, Volume Two, “The Ivory Tower of Babel:
1996-2006” (Fall 2013)
The Lonely Activist: An American Odyssey, Volume Three, “Fire in the Palouse: 2006-
2014” (2014)
Other Books by the Author
The Ivory Tower of Babel: Why the Social Sciences Are Failing to Live up to Their Promises
(New York, NY: Algora Publishing, 2011).
History and Future of Mass Media: An Integrated Perspective (Cresskill, NJ: Hampton
Press, 2007).
A Dictionary of Mass Communication & Media Research (Spokane, WA: Marquette
Books, 2005).
China Girl: One Man’s Adoption Story (Spokane: Marquette Books, 2004).
The Media Essays: From Local to Global (Spokane, WA: Marquette Books, 2003).
Global Media: Menace or Messiah? (Cresskill, NJ: Hampton Press, 1999, 2002 revised).
Mass Media, Social Control and Social Change: A Macrosocial Perspective (Ames, IA: Iowa
State University Press, 1999, co-edited with K. Viswanath).
The Menace of the Corporate Newspaper: Fact or Fiction? (Ames, IA: Iowa State University
Press, 1996).
Precision Journalism: A Practical Guide (Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications, 1987,
with Suzanne Nichols).

Copyright © 2013 American Center for Civil Liberties
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any
means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming,
recording, or otherwise, without permission of the publisher.
Printed in the United States of America
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA
Demers, David, 1953-
The lonely activist : an American odyssey / David Demers.
volumes cm
Includes bibliographical references and indexes.
ISBN 978-0-9833476-5-1 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Demers, David, 1953- 2. Journalists--United States--Biography.
3. Mass media specialists--United States--Biography. 4. College teachers--United
States--Biography. 5. Civil rights--United States.
I. Title.
PN4874.D3975A3 2013
070.92--dc23
[B]
2013021108
INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BOOK NUMBER
978-0-9833476-5-1
All photographs shown in this book are in the public domain,
were used with permission, or were taken by the author.
Cover illustration obtained from Fotoloia.com and adapted
from a copyrighted graphic by ~lonely~ (used with permission)
The American Center for Civil Liberties is a not-for-profit organization
promoting civil liberties and freedom of speech. Please visit www.acfcl.org
MARQUETTE BOOKS
3107 East 62nd Avenue
Spokane, WA 99223
www.MarquetteBooks.com
To Jan Polek,
who believed in people
who believed in lost causes.

C
ONTENTS
DEFINITIONS, xiii
. M CAST OF CHARACTERS, xv
VOLUME ONE — ANATOMY OF AN ACTIVIST, 1
1 A Flag Burning, 3
2 Cockroaches and Professors, 6
3 The Tranquil Years, 9
4 Lies, Damned Lies and Student Evaluations, 11
5 The Anti-Holocaust Advertisement, 13
6 The Faculty Salary Series, 15
7 Apologize or Else! 17
8 The “Great Disservice”, 18
9 Victory for the Students, 19
10 The Honeymoon Is Over, 21
11 ‘You’ve Got No Case’, 23
12 The Uncollegial, 24
13 Second-Party Tape Recordings, 26
14 The Personal Toll, 30
15 Pack Your Bags, 31
16 Nothin’ But a Troublemaker? 33
17 The Lottery, 35
18 Lucky Bob? 36
19 Early History of an Activist, 38
20 “Hang the Frenchman”, 45
21 Voltaire: An Activist’s Role Model, 48
22 Applied Enlightenment, 51
23 Sociology Is for Activists, 54
24 Children of the Enlightenment, 59
25 ‘What the Hell Is Going On?’ 64
26 Tricky Dicky, 65
27 The Enlightenment of Plato and Dewey, 68
28 Working for Corporate America, 70
29 Narcissism and Commie Pinkos, 72
30 The Woodstein Effect, 73
31 CMU Gate, 75
32 A Big Fish in a Small Pond, 79
33 Margaret Mead the Activist, 80
34 The Hockey Coach Molester, 82
35 Cattle Prods and the Bureaucracy, 84
36 Dow Chemical and Ethylbenzene Tar, 86
37 Journalistic Putrescence, 88
38 The Kiplinger Program, 91
39 Green Eyeshades v. Chi-Squares, 94
40 More Truth Next Time? 96
41 Dinitz the Doubter, 98
42 The Crisis of Relevance in Criminology, 99
43 The Enrollment Crisis in Sociology, 101
44 Security versus Freedom, 102
45 Impact of Criminology, 105
46 Shades of Felix Heider, 106
47 The Organization Man, 109
48 The Lonely Crowd, 112
49 Cool Life at Minnesota, 114
50 Habermas and The Enlightenment, 116
51 Noam Chomsky and Activism, 118
52 The Open-Minded Adviser, 127
53 Corporate Media Aren’t So Bad, 131
54 Impact of Critical Scholarship, 133
55 Are Minneapolis Police Racist? 135
56 Suing the Minneapolis Police, 138
57 Not Giving Up, 141
58 Suing a Bureaucracy: The Weberian Lessons, 143
59 The Problem with Bureaucracies, 145
60 Losing Faith, 148
61 Marshall Tanick, 149
62 A Year at Minnesota, 150
63 Almost 15 Minutes of Fame, 151
64 A New Job, 154
65 The $64,000 Apology, 155
66 The Aftermath, 158
ENDNOTES FOR VOLUME ONE, 159
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS, 179
NAME INDEX FOR VOLUME ONE, 181
SUBJECT INDEX FOR VOLUME ONE, 183
ABOUT THE AUTHOR, 186