{"product_id":"acts-of-conscience-steven-j-taylor-9780815609155","title":"Acts of Conscience: World War II, Mental Institutions, and Religious Objectors","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn the mid- to late 1940s, a group of young men rattled the psychiatric establishment by beaming a public spotlight on the squalid conditions and brutality in our nation's mental hospitals and training schools for people with psychiatric and intellectual disabilities. Bringing the abuses to the attention of newspapers and magazines across the country, they led a reform effort to change public attitudes and to improve the training and status of institutional staff. Prominent Americans, such as Eleanor Roosevelt, ACLU founder Roger Baldwin, author Pearl S. Buck, actress Helen Hayes, and African-American activist Mary McLeod Bethune, supported the efforts of the young men. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThese young men were among the 12,000 World War II conscientious objectors who chose to perform civilian public service as an alternative to fighting in what is widely regarded as America's \"good war.\" Three thousand of these men volunteered to work at state institutions where they discovered appalling conditions. Acting on conscience a second time, they challenged America's treatment of its citizens with severe disabilities. \u003ci\u003eActs of Conscience\u003c\/i\u003e brings to light the extra-ordinary efforts of these courageous men, drawing upon extensive archival research, interviews, and personal correspondence. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe World War II conscientious objectors were not the first to expose public institutions, and they would not be the last. What distinguishes them from reformers of other eras is that their activities have faded from the professional and popular memory. Taylor's moving account is an indispensable contribution to the historical record.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Steven J. Taylor\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0815609159\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780815609155\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Syracuse University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 07\/10\/2009\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 484\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 2.55lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 10.30h x 7.30w x 1.70d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eChoice\u003c\/i\u003e 09\/01\/2009\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eScitech Book News\u003c\/i\u003e 09\/01\/2009 pg. 90","brand":"Steven J. Taylor","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":43947324604671,"sku":"9780815609155","price":45.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/products\/img_21d2ea9d-6004-4643-a413-957440f9634a.jpg?v=1681518048","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/acts-of-conscience-steven-j-taylor-9780815609155","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}