Kunstler And The '60s

In My Life As A Radical Lawyer, the now-deceased William Kunstler summarized some lessons of the 1960s:

“Looking back, I realize that the individuals and groups that protested and dissented were all part of one enormous struggle against evil…

“During that decade, we made great strides in civil rights, checking the power of government, and all human rights. But we have to keep working not to lose ground and to continue gaining. If we don’t fight, evil will win…We certainly can’t trust the government to protect us. This is because the American judiciary, from the Supreme Court on down, and the rest of the system are not friends of the people…

“The struggle continues today, although more subtly than in the ‘60s…

“If the ‘60s taught me anything, from the South in the early years to Chicago in 1969 and after, it is that those with power will never quit, that the Establishment will not rest until it roots out and destroys all opposition.”

In concluding his 1994 autobiography, Kunstler observed that “I would like to be remembered as someone who did what I wanted to do with my life, who did it with some other end in view than the mere acquisition of tangible, material goods, who had some effect on the lives of people that I touched” and “who contributed…to the holding on to whatever rights and liberties are still available to Americans.”

(Downtown 9/20/95)

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