{"product_id":"courage-or-complicity-how-veterans-are-responding-to-the-assault-on-democracy-1","title":"Courage or Complicity?: How Veterans Are Responding to the Assault on Democracy","description":"\u003cp\u003eby Steve Early and Suzanne Gordan\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePM Press\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e8\/11\/2026, paperback\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSKU: \u003cspan id=\"pd-product-id\"\u003e9798887440200\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eFor generations, America has thanked its veterans for their service but then forgotten promises made to them.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThat’s why some former soldiers have always ended up on the barricades or picket lines, demanding justice for themselves or fellow workers back home. From Revolutionary War volunteers who later joined Shays’s Rebellion to World War I soldiers who staged a multiracial march on Washington to Vietnam War–era GIs who helped end the war they served in, such rank-and-file voices are hard to ignore.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn this timely collection of essays, reviews, and firsthand reporting, Steve Early and Suzanne Gordon trace that dissident legacy to the present day. They chronicle the critical role that disillusioned post-9\/11 veterans now play in challenging MAGA Republicans and corporate Democrats over privatized healthcare, big money in politics, and ballooning Pentagon budgets. Inside these pages are stories of courage and complicity: veterans fighting to defend public healthcare from corporate takeover; resisting anti-union attacks; and opposing the use of federal troops for domestic policing and mass deportations. Their struggle is part of a broader fight for rights, dignity, and a better life for all poor and working-class Americans.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eCourage or Complicity?\u003c\/i\u003e is a searing indictment of political betrayal and a big salute to vets organizing against it. This book reveals the frontline battles shaping the future of American democracy.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eReviews:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“In a nation much devoted to hero worship of veterans, too little attention is paid to actual life in the military and its aftermath. Steve Early and Suzanne Gordon offer the most comprehensive and honest accounting of what my fellow veterans have experienced post-9\/11 and the challenges we face today. Their new book is sweeping, authoritative, and bold. As more Americans stand up against the politicians and corporations falsely claiming to be on our side, the authors show how military veterans can join the charge against them.”\u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e— Matthew Hoh, former marine captain and State Department officer, Iraq War combat veteran\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“As this timely book reports, the unlawful use of National Guard units in a nationwide assault on immigrants and DOGE-driven attacks on federal jobs and services has led to a new wave of labor, community, and political activism by former service members and military families. In their dispatches from the frontlines, the authors chronicle the role of veterans and their organizations in this critical defense of democracy against authoritarianism.” — Joanna Sweatt, Marine Corps veteran and national organizing director, Common Defense\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“Early and Gordon provide us with an urgent guide to understanding how and why the ruling class has turned and always will turn its back on veterans. Veterans looking to harness their sense of betrayal to the struggle for a more just world should read this essential book—and then spread the word about it.” — Rory Fanning, Afghanistan war veteran, former army ranger, and author of \u003ci\u003eWorth Fighting For\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAbout the Authors:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eSteve Early\u003c\/b\u003e has been active in the Communications Workers of America for forty-five years, first as an International Union Representative and now as a News Guild\/CWA member. He has\u003cbr\u003eworked with Labor Notes, Teamsters for a Democratic Union, Association for Union Democracy, Jobs with Justice, and Labor for Bernie. Early is the author or coauthor of five previous books: \u003ci\u003eOur Veterans: Winners, Losers, Friends, and Enemies on the New Terrain of Veterans Affairs\u003c\/i\u003e; \u003ci\u003eRefinery Town: Big Oil, Big Money, and the Remaking of An American City\u003c\/i\u003e; \u003ci\u003eThe Civil Wars in U.S. Labor\u003c\/i\u003e; \u003ci\u003eSave Our\u003cbr\u003eUnions\u003c\/i\u003e; and \u003ci\u003eEmbedded with Organized Labor. \u003c\/i\u003eHe lives in Richmond, CA.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eSuzanne Gordon\u003c\/b\u003e is an award-winning journalist and author who belongs to the News Guild\/CWA. She has written for \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Los Angeles Times\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Washington Post\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe\u003cbr\u003eAtlantic\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Nation\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Boston Globe\u003c\/i\u003e, and many others. She is the cofounder of the Veterans Healthcare Policy Institute and serves as a Senior Policy Analyst. She is the author, editor, or coauthor of twenty books, including previous works on veterans' and healthcare-related issues including \u003ci\u003eWounds of War: How the VA Delivers Health, Healing, and Hope to the Nation's Veterans\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eFrom Silence to Voice: What Nurses Know and Must Communicate to the Public\u003c\/i\u003e. She received a Special Recognition Award from the Disabled American Veterans for her writing about veteran issues. She lives in Richmond, CA.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Burning Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52789124792603,"sku":"Courage or Complicity?","price":24.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0466\/5121\/files\/large_2149_9798887440200_fc.jpg?v=1786402534","url":"https:\/\/burningbooks.com\/products\/courage-or-complicity-how-veterans-are-responding-to-the-assault-on-democracy-1","provider":"Burning Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}