Roots for Radicals Organizing for Power, Action, and Justice

Roots for Radicals is a distillation of the IAF (Industrial Areas Foundation) philosophy and its unique approach to community organizing. The IAF is the oldest and largest institution for community organizing in the United States. For sixty years, its mission has been to train people to take responsibility for solving the problems in their own communities and to renew the interest of citizens in public life. The IAF, now headed by the author, Edward T. Chambers, has taken founder Saul Alinsky's original vision, refined it, and created a sophisticated national network of citizens' organizations. One of the key activities is its 10-day training sessions for community organizers.

Edward T. Chambers, who was born in 1930, holds a bachelor's degree in philosophy and classics from St. John's University, Collegeville, and an honorary doctorate from DePaul University in Chicago Michael A. Cowan is professor and executive director of the Lindy Boggs National Center for Community Literacy at Loyola University New Orleans