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The Empire WithinPostcolonial Thought and Political Activism in Sixties Montreal |
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A compelling study of the global dimensions and local particularities of political activism in Sixties Montreal.
How did a First World urban population come to imagine itself as part of a global anti-colonial movement? The Empire Within tackles this and other paradoxes created by the surprising power and influence of Third World decolonization on political activism in 1960s Montreal.
In a brilliant history of a turbulent time and place, Mills pulls back the curtain on the decade's activists and intellectuals, showing their engagement both with each other and with people from around the world. He demonstrates how activists of different backgrounds and with different political aims drew on ideas of decolonization to rethink the meanings attached to the politics of sex, race, and class and to imagine themselves as part of a broad transnational movement of anti-colonial and anti-imperialist resistance. The temporary unity forged around ideas of decolonization came undone in the 1970s, however, as many were forced to come to terms with the contradictions and ambiguities of applying ideas of decolonization in Quebec. From linguistic debates to labour unions, and from the political activities of citizens in the city's poorest neighbourhoods to its Caribbean intellectuals, The Empire Within is a political tour of Montreal that reconsiders the meaning and legacy of the city's dissident traditions. It is also a fascinating chapter in the history of postcolonial thought.
In a brilliant history of a turbulent time and place, Mills pulls back the curtain on the decade's activists and intellectuals, showing their engagement both with each other and with people from around the world. He demonstrates how activists of different backgrounds and with different political aims drew on ideas of decolonization to rethink the meanings attached to the politics of sex, race, and class and to imagine themselves as part of a broad transnational movement of anti-colonial and anti-imperialist resistance. The temporary unity forged around ideas of decolonization came undone in the 1970s, however, as many were forced to come to terms with the contradictions and ambiguities of applying ideas of decolonization in Quebec. From linguistic debates to labour unions, and from the political activities of citizens in the city's poorest neighbourhoods to its Caribbean intellectuals, The Empire Within is a political tour of Montreal that reconsiders the meaning and legacy of the city's dissident traditions. It is also a fascinating chapter in the history of postcolonial thought.
Details
Part of the Études d'histoire du Québec / Studies on the History of Quebec (number 23 in series)
302 Pages, 6 x 9
11 b&w photos
ISBN 9780773536838
March 2010
Formats: Cloth, Paperback, eBook
“It seems that I have been waiting for this book my entire adult life - there is nothing like it. The Empire Within is a remarkable study that explodes our old understanding of 1960s Quebec and Canadian history. By revealing the extent to which global decolonization theory informed radical Montreal activists of the time, Sean Mills takes us beyond the scene's usual Anglophone-Francophone divide. This book is a refreshing change and will prove to be a compelling read for all. Activists, take note!” Steven High, Canada Research Chair in Public History, Concordia University
“In this path-breaking book, Montreal assumes its rightful place as a central site of North American radicalism during the long Sixties. It is essential reading for US historians seeking to break free from the shell of 'national' history and posit New Leftism as an Atlantic and hemispheric phenomenon.” Van Gosse, professor of history, Franklin & Marshall College, and the author of Rethinking the New Left: An Interpretative History
“The Empire Within should be required reading for anyone who wants to understand Montreal and Quebec society.” Montreal Review of Books
“Mills writes engagingly, and he sees past the English-French divisions that too often overshadow Montreal's vibrant diversity.” Bookforum
“... a considerable achievement. [The Empire Within] is a book that all involved and interested in the Left will want to read seriously and think rigorously about, precisely because it resonates so well with the issues of current times.” Canadian Dimension
“Mills' book meets the expectations of those who participated in the movements of 1960s and 70s; it could well be a companion to Jean-Phillipe Warren's Ils voulaient changer le monde. Le militantisme Marxiste-Léniniste au Québec.” William Dere and Daya Varma, rabble.ca
“For moving beyond an exceptional Quebec in this transnational approach, rising above a historiography focused on the radicals behind the October Crisis, and providing an excellent readable history of a fascinating period of Quebec, Mills' work is a necessary addition to the literature of the period.” Dustbin Epitaph
“The Empire Within is a fascinating glimpse into a decade of political upheaval whose effects are still being felt today.” Journal of Postcolonial Theory and Theology
"...cet ouvrage... il contribue a une meilleure comprehension des debats politiques et sociaux actuels qui sont domines par les questions des droits linguistiques et de l'integration des nouveaux immigrants dans la societe quebecoise... La question de l'heritage des mouvements des annees 1960s doit etre approfondie et debattue, et l'ouvrage de M. Mills nous offre un point de depart des plus pertinents pour le faire." Éric Shragge, Université Concordia
"...makes an immense contribution to an emerging subfield in Canadian and Québécois historiography " Socialist Studies
"Il s'agit d'un livre à mettre entre toutes les mains, fussent-elles celles d'étudiants, de professeurs ou de lecteurs anglophones curieux de notre histoire." Magali Deleuze, Collège militaire royal du Canada
“In this path-breaking book, Montreal assumes its rightful place as a central site of North American radicalism during the long Sixties. It is essential reading for US historians seeking to break free from the shell of 'national' history and posit New Leftism as an Atlantic and hemispheric phenomenon.” Van Gosse, professor of history, Franklin & Marshall College, and the author of Rethinking the New Left: An Interpretative History
“The Empire Within should be required reading for anyone who wants to understand Montreal and Quebec society.” Montreal Review of Books
“Mills writes engagingly, and he sees past the English-French divisions that too often overshadow Montreal's vibrant diversity.” Bookforum
“... a considerable achievement. [The Empire Within] is a book that all involved and interested in the Left will want to read seriously and think rigorously about, precisely because it resonates so well with the issues of current times.” Canadian Dimension
“Mills' book meets the expectations of those who participated in the movements of 1960s and 70s; it could well be a companion to Jean-Phillipe Warren's Ils voulaient changer le monde. Le militantisme Marxiste-Léniniste au Québec.” William Dere and Daya Varma, rabble.ca
“For moving beyond an exceptional Quebec in this transnational approach, rising above a historiography focused on the radicals behind the October Crisis, and providing an excellent readable history of a fascinating period of Quebec, Mills' work is a necessary addition to the literature of the period.” Dustbin Epitaph
“The Empire Within is a fascinating glimpse into a decade of political upheaval whose effects are still being felt today.” Journal of Postcolonial Theory and Theology
"...cet ouvrage... il contribue a une meilleure comprehension des debats politiques et sociaux actuels qui sont domines par les questions des droits linguistiques et de l'integration des nouveaux immigrants dans la societe quebecoise... La question de l'heritage des mouvements des annees 1960s doit etre approfondie et debattue, et l'ouvrage de M. Mills nous offre un point de depart des plus pertinents pour le faire." Éric Shragge, Université Concordia
"...makes an immense contribution to an emerging subfield in Canadian and Québécois historiography " Socialist Studies
"Il s'agit d'un livre à mettre entre toutes les mains, fussent-elles celles d'étudiants, de professeurs ou de lecteurs anglophones curieux de notre histoire." Magali Deleuze, Collège militaire royal du Canada
Sean Mills holds a Ph.D in history from Queen's University and is a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of English at New York University.
Acknowledgments xi
Abbreviations xv
Introduction 3
PART ONE 1963-1968
1 Empire, Democracy, and Montreal 19
2 The Antecedents 40
3 The International Dimension of Resistance 62
Illustrations 85
PART TWO 1968-1972
4 Montreal’s Black Renaissance 95
5 Québécoises deboutte! 119
6 The Language of Liberation 138
7 The CSN, the FLQ, and the October Crisis 163
8 Labour, Empire, and May 1972 187
Conclusion: May Day, 1973 207
Notes 217
Bibliography 275
Index 299
Abbreviations xv
Introduction 3
PART ONE 1963-1968
1 Empire, Democracy, and Montreal 19
2 The Antecedents 40
3 The International Dimension of Resistance 62
Illustrations 85
PART TWO 1968-1972
4 Montreal’s Black Renaissance 95
5 Québécoises deboutte! 119
6 The Language of Liberation 138
7 The CSN, the FLQ, and the October Crisis 163
8 Labour, Empire, and May 1972 187
Conclusion: May Day, 1973 207
Notes 217
Bibliography 275
Index 299
9780773536241
$43.95 CAD
Paperback
Honourable Mention
Sir John A. Macdonald Prize
Canadian Historical Association (2011)
Winner
First Book Prize
Quebec Writers' Federation Awards (2010)
Sir John A. Macdonald Prize
Canadian Historical Association (2011)
Winner
First Book Prize
Quebec Writers' Federation Awards (2010)
