Co-authored with her brother, investigative journalist David Goodman, Standing Up to the Madness is about ordinary citizens creating real and lasting political change.
Goodman, who last spoke at HSU in 2006, will highlight the importance of independent media for the sake of diversity of viewpoints on important issues.
As Goodman says, “the media are the most powerful corporations on Earth—more powerful than any bomb, more powerful than any missile.”
Most of the accounts in her book would not have come to light without the presence of independent media.
For example, the Goodman duo illustrate the courage of African-American residents from disaster-torn New Orleans as they fight racism and city hall to reclaim their homes. They describe the victorious battle of Connecticut librarians who refused to turn over patron records to comply with the U.S. Patriot Act. They tell the tale of high school students who were barred from performing a play they created about the Iraq war based on letters from soldiers and how the students’ actions landed them on the stage of the prestigious Public Theater in New York.
And they recount the story of James Hanses, a NASA scientist who ran the Goddard Institute. His articles on climate change were edited by a 24-year-old who didn’t even have a college degree.
“During our travels, we see created grass roots existence. Coast to coast we see that people have been defending democracy,” said David Goodman.
As an advocate against apathy, Amy Goodman plans to spread the word about positive changes that are happening in the United States with the intent of inspiring community involvement and democracy.
Goodman insists that, “when we are talking about a new age, it has to involve new people thinking outside the box.”
Goodman’s tour commemorates Democracy Now!’s 13th anniversary as one of the nation’s most popular independent media shows.
Democracy Now! can be heard locally on KHSU (90.5 FM) weekdays at 9 a.m. and on KMUD (88.3 FM in Arcata) weekdays at noon.
For more information or to purchase the book, visit http://www.democracynow.org
For ticket information, visit Center Arts http://www.humboldt.edu/~carts