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Beacon Press

March 20, 2023

Not to be confused with Beacon Hill Press.

Beacon Press is an American left-wing[2] non-profit book publisher. Founded in 1854 by the American Unitarian Association, it is currently a department of the Unitarian Universalist Association.[3] It is known for publishing authors such as James Baldwin, Mary Oliver, Martin Luther King Jr., and Viktor Frankl, as well as The Pentagon Papers.

Beacon Press
Parent companyUnitarian Universalist Association
Founded1854 (1854)
Country of originUnited States
Headquarters locationBoston
DistributionPenguin Random House Publisher Services (worldwide)
Publishers Group UK (UK)[1]
Key peopleGayatri Patnaik, director
Official websitewww.beacon.org

History

The history of Beacon Press actually begins in 1825, the year the American Unitarian Association (AUA) was formed. This liberal religious movement had the enlightened notion to publish and distribute books and tracts that would spread the word of their beliefs not only about theology but also about society and justice.

The Early Years: 1854–1900

In the Press of the American Unitarian Association (as Beacon was called then) purchased and published works that were largely religious in nature and "conservative Unitarian" in viewpoint (far more progressive, nonetheless, than many other denominations). The authors were often Unitarian ministers—dead or alive, American or British, mostly Caucasian, and far more male than female. Many of the books were collections of sermons, lectures, and letters, balanced by volumes of devotion, hymns, and morally uplifting tales.

New Century, New Mission: 1900–1945

In the early 1900s Samuel Eliot broadened the mission of the press by publishing books dealing with ethical, sociological, philanthropic, and similar subjects, as well as those of a more strictly religious character. . . . Although books of marked theology and religious note continued to have a predominant place in Association publication, the wide interest in all subjects relating to social and moral betterment were included and the evergrowing topics of war and peace and arbitration, or national amity and racial brotherhood were represented

The Modern Era: 1945–

In 1949, Beacon published American Freedom and Catholic Power, an anti-Catholic book written by socialist and secular humanist Paul Blanshard, who was the assistant editor for The Nation.

Under director Gobin Stair (1962–75), new authors included James Baldwin, Kenneth Clark, André Gorz, Herbert Marcuse, Jürgen Habermas, Howard Zinn, Ben Bagdikian, Mary Daly, and Jean Baker Miller. Wendy Strothman became Beacon's director in 1983; she set up the organization's first advisory board, a group of scholars and publishing professionals who advised on book choices and direction. She turned a budget deficit into a surplus. In 1995, her last year at Beacon, Strothman summarized the Press's mission: "We at Beacon publish the books we choose because they share a moral vision and a sense that greater understanding can influence the course of events. They are books we believe in."[4] Strothman was replaced by Helene Atwan in 1995.

In 1971, it published the "Senator Gravel edition" of The Pentagon Papers for the first time in book form, when no other publisher was willing to risk publishing such controversial material. Robert West, then-president of the Unitarian Universalist Association, approved the decision to publish The Pentagon Papers, which West claims resulted in two-and-a-half years of harassment and intimidation by the Nixon administration.[5] In Gravel v. United States, the Supreme Court decided that the Constitution's "Speech or Debate Clause" protected Gravel and some acts of his aide, but not Beacon Press.

Beacon Press seeks to publish works that "affirm and promote" several principles:

the inherent worth and dignity of every person; justice, equity and compassion in human relations; acceptance of one another; a free and responsible search for truth and meaning; the right of conscience and the use of the democratic process in society; the goal of the world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all; respect for the interdependent web of all existence; and the importance of literature and the arts in democratic life.

Beacon Press is a member of the Association of University Presses.[6][7]

Books and authors

 
Beacon Press building, Beacon Hill, Boston, 2010

Beacon Press publishes non-fiction, fiction, and poetry titles. Some of Beacon's best-known titles are listed below.

Title(s) Author(s) Year(s)
American Freedom and Catholic Power[8] Paul Blanshard 1948, 1958[9]
SNCC: The New Abolitionists[10] Howard Zinn 1964
A Critique of Pure Tolerance[11] Robert Paul Wolff, Barrington Moore Jr, Herbert Marcuse 1965
Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?[12] Martin Luther King Jr. 1967, 2010
The Transsexual Empire[13] Janice Raymond 1979
Notes of a Native Son[14] James Baldwin 1984
Toward a New Psychology of Women[15] Jean Baker Miller 1987
Gyn/Ecology[16] Mary Daly 1990
One-Dimensional Man[17] Herbert Marcuse 1964
Fist, Stick, Knife, Gun[18] Geoffrey Canada 1995
The Power of Their Ideas[19] Deborah Meier 1995
Race Matters[20] Cornel West 2001
New and Selected Poems: Volume One,[21] Thirst[22] Mary Oliver 2005, 2007
Resurrecting Empire[23] Rashid Khalidi 2005
Man's Search for Meaning[24] Viktor Frankl 2006
Without a Map[25] Meredith Hall 2007
All Souls: A Family Story from Southie[26] Michael Patrick MacDonald 2007
The Court and the Cross[27] Frederick Lane 2008
An African American and Latinx History of the United States Paul Ortiz 2018
White Fragility[28] Robin DiAngelo 2018
Superior: The Return of Race Science[29] Angela Saini 2019
Nice Racism Robin DiAngelo 2021

The King Legacy Series

In 2009, Beacon Press announced a new partnership with the Estate of Martin Luther King Jr. for a new publishing program, "The King Legacy."[30] As part of the program, Beacon is printing new editions of previously published King titles and compiling Dr. King's writings, sermons, orations, lectures, and prayers into entirely new editions, including new introductions by leading scholars.

Beacon Broadside

Beacon Press launched its blog, Beacon Broadside, in late September 2007.[31]

Awards

In 1992, Beacon won a New England Book Award for publishing.[32] In 1993, Beacon was voted "Trade Publisher of the Year" by the Literary Market Place.[33]

See also

References

  1. ^ Publishers Group UK – Publishers
  2. ^ Bisbort, Alan (2008). Media Scandals. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-0-313-34766-5. Among left-wing publishers have been stalwarts like Beacon Press
  3. ^ "Beacon Press Celebrates 150 Years of Publishing". UU World: The Magazine of the Unitarian Universalist Association. September–October 2004. Retrieved 2007-09-26.
  4. ^ Wilson, (2004), p. 209.
  5. ^ . Archived from the original on 2009-09-04. Retrieved 2010-12-16.
  6. ^ "Our Members". Association of University Presses. Retrieved January 30, 2023.
  7. ^ "Association of American University Presses Membership Directory". from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-26.
  8. ^ Blanshard, Paul (1948). American Freedom and Catholic Power. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. Revised 2nd edition 1958.
  9. ^ Blanshard, Paul. American freedom and Catholic power. Boston: Beacon Press. Second Edition, January 1, 1958
  10. ^ Zinn, Howard (1964). SNCC : The New Abolitionists. Beacon Press. ISBN 9781608462995.
  11. ^ Wolff, Robert Paul; Barrington Moore Jr; Herbert Marcuse. A Critique of Pure Tolerance. Boston: Beacon Press. 1965. ISBN 978-0807015599
  12. ^ King Jr., Martin Luther. Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?. Beacon Press, Boston. 1967. ISBN 978-0-8070-0067-0
  13. ^ G., Raymond, Janice (1979). The transsexual empire : the making of the she-male. Boston: Beacon Press. ISBN 0807021644. OCLC 4529467.
  14. ^ Baldwin, James (July 9, 1984). Notes of a Native Son. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. ISBN 978-0-8070-6431-3.
  15. ^ Miller, Jean Baker (1987). Toward a New Psychology of Women. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. ISBN 978-080702909-1.
  16. ^ Daly, Mary (November 12, 1990). Gyn/Ecology: The Metaethics of Radical Feminism. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. ISBN 978-0-8070-1413-4.
  17. ^ Marcuse, Herbert (October 1, 1964). One-Dimensional Man: Studies in the Ideology of Advanced Industrial Society. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. ISBN 978-0-8070-1417-2.
  18. ^ Canada, Geoffrey (January 31, 1995). Fist, Stick, Knife, Gun. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. ISBN 978-0-8070-0423-4.
  19. ^ Meier, Deborah (November 12, 1995). The Power of Their Ideas: Lessons for America from a Small School in Harlem. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. ISBN 978-0-8070-3113-1.
  20. ^ West, Cornel (May 25, 2001). Race Matters. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. ISBN 978-0-8070-0972-7.
  21. ^ Oliver, Mary (November 15, 2005). New and Selected Poems: Volume One. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. ISBN 978-0-8070-6878-6.
  22. ^ Oliver, Mary (September 2, 2007). Thirst. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. ISBN 978-0-8070-6897-7.
  23. ^ Khalidi, Rashid (April 15, 2005). Resurrecting Empire: Western Footprints and America's Perilous Path. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. ISBN 978-0-8070-0235-3.
  24. ^ Frankl, Viktor (June 14, 2006). Man's Search for Meaning. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. ISBN 978-0-8070-1429-5.
  25. ^ Hall, Meredith (April 11, 2007). Without a Map. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. ISBN 978-0-8070-7273-8.
  26. ^ MacDonald, Michael Patrick (October 4, 2007). All Souls: A Family Story from Southie. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. ISBN 978-0-8070-7213-4.
  27. ^ Lane, Frederick S. (June 1, 2008). The Court and the Cross. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. pp. 288 pages. ISBN 978-0-8070-4424-7.
  28. ^ DiAngelo, Robin. Contrib Michael Eric Dyson. White Fragility. Beacon Press, Boston, 2018. ISBN 9780807047422
  29. ^ Saini, Angela. Superior. Beacon Press, Boston, 2019. ISBN 9780807076910
  30. ^ "Beacon Press to reissue Martin Luther King Jr.'s books". UU World Blog. June 1, 2009.
  31. ^ Philocrites: Beacon Press launches 'Beacon Broadside' blog
  32. ^ . Archived from the original on 2007-07-24. Retrieved 2007-09-26.
  33. ^ History and Mission

Further reading

  • Wilson, Susan. "Beacon's Modern Era: 1945–2003," Journal of Scholarly Publishing (2004) 35#4 pp. 200–209 online

External links

March 20, 2023
beacon, press, confused, with, beacon, hill, press, american, left, wing, profit, book, publisher, founded, 1854, american, unitarian, association, currently, department, unitarian, universalist, association, known, publishing, authors, such, james, baldwin, m. Not to be confused with Beacon Hill Press Beacon Press is an American left wing 2 non profit book publisher Founded in 1854 by the American Unitarian Association it is currently a department of the Unitarian Universalist Association 3 It is known for publishing authors such as James Baldwin Mary Oliver Martin Luther King Jr and Viktor Frankl as well as The Pentagon Papers Beacon PressParent companyUnitarian Universalist AssociationFounded1854 1854 Country of originUnited StatesHeadquarters locationBostonDistributionPenguin Random House Publisher Services worldwide Publishers Group UK UK 1 Key peopleGayatri Patnaik directorOfficial websitewww wbr beacon wbr org Contents 1 History 2 Books and authors 2 1 The King Legacy Series 3 Beacon Broadside 4 Awards 5 See also 6 References 7 Further reading 8 External linksHistory EditThe history of Beacon Press actually begins in 1825 the year the American Unitarian Association AUA was formed This liberal religious movement had the enlightened notion to publish and distribute books and tracts that would spread the word of their beliefs not only about theology but also about society and justice The Early Years 1854 1900In the Press of the American Unitarian Association as Beacon was called then purchased and published works that were largely religious in nature and conservative Unitarian in viewpoint far more progressive nonetheless than many other denominations The authors were often Unitarian ministers dead or alive American or British mostly Caucasian and far more male than female Many of the books were collections of sermons lectures and letters balanced by volumes of devotion hymns and morally uplifting tales New Century New Mission 1900 1945In the early 1900s Samuel Eliot broadened the mission of the press by publishing books dealing with ethical sociological philanthropic and similar subjects as well as those of a more strictly religious character Although books of marked theology and religious note continued to have a predominant place in Association publication the wide interest in all subjects relating to social and moral betterment were included and the evergrowing topics of war and peace and arbitration or national amity and racial brotherhood were representedThe Modern Era 1945 In 1949 Beacon published American Freedom and Catholic Power an anti Catholic book written by socialist and secular humanist Paul Blanshard who was the assistant editor for The Nation Under director Gobin Stair 1962 75 new authors included James Baldwin Kenneth Clark Andre Gorz Herbert Marcuse Jurgen Habermas Howard Zinn Ben Bagdikian Mary Daly and Jean Baker Miller Wendy Strothman became Beacon s director in 1983 she set up the organization s first advisory board a group of scholars and publishing professionals who advised on book choices and direction She turned a budget deficit into a surplus In 1995 her last year at Beacon Strothman summarized the Press s mission We at Beacon publish the books we choose because they share a moral vision and a sense that greater understanding can influence the course of events They are books we believe in 4 Strothman was replaced by Helene Atwan in 1995 In 1971 it published the Senator Gravel edition of The Pentagon Papers for the first time in book form when no other publisher was willing to risk publishing such controversial material Robert West then president of the Unitarian Universalist Association approved the decision to publish The Pentagon Papers which West claims resulted in two and a half years of harassment and intimidation by the Nixon administration 5 In Gravel v United States the Supreme Court decided that the Constitution s Speech or Debate Clause protected Gravel and some acts of his aide but not Beacon Press Beacon Press seeks to publish works that affirm and promote several principles the inherent worth and dignity of every person justice equity and compassion in human relations acceptance of one another a free and responsible search for truth and meaning the right of conscience and the use of the democratic process in society the goal of the world community with peace liberty and justice for all respect for the interdependent web of all existence and the importance of literature and the arts in democratic life Beacon Press is a member of the Association of University Presses 6 7 Books and authors Edit Beacon Press building Beacon Hill Boston 2010 Beacon Press publishes non fiction fiction and poetry titles Some of Beacon s best known titles are listed below Title s Author s Year s American Freedom and Catholic Power 8 Paul Blanshard 1948 1958 9 SNCC The New Abolitionists 10 Howard Zinn 1964A Critique of Pure Tolerance 11 Robert Paul Wolff Barrington Moore Jr Herbert Marcuse 1965Where Do We Go from Here Chaos or Community 12 Martin Luther King Jr 1967 2010The Transsexual Empire 13 Janice Raymond 1979Notes of a Native Son 14 James Baldwin 1984Toward a New Psychology of Women 15 Jean Baker Miller 1987Gyn Ecology 16 Mary Daly 1990One Dimensional Man 17 Herbert Marcuse 1964Fist Stick Knife Gun 18 Geoffrey Canada 1995The Power of Their Ideas 19 Deborah Meier 1995Race Matters 20 Cornel West 2001New and Selected Poems Volume One 21 Thirst 22 Mary Oliver 2005 2007Resurrecting Empire 23 Rashid Khalidi 2005Man s Search for Meaning 24 Viktor Frankl 2006Without a Map 25 Meredith Hall 2007All Souls A Family Story from Southie 26 Michael Patrick MacDonald 2007The Court and the Cross 27 Frederick Lane 2008An African American and Latinx History of the United States Paul Ortiz 2018White Fragility 28 Robin DiAngelo 2018Superior The Return of Race Science 29 Angela Saini 2019Nice Racism Robin DiAngelo 2021The King Legacy Series Edit In 2009 Beacon Press announced a new partnership with the Estate of Martin Luther King Jr for a new publishing program The King Legacy 30 As part of the program Beacon is printing new editions of previously published King titles and compiling Dr King s writings sermons orations lectures and prayers into entirely new editions including new introductions by leading scholars Beacon Broadside EditBeacon Press launched its blog Beacon Broadside in late September 2007 31 Awards EditIn 1992 Beacon won a New England Book Award for publishing 32 In 1993 Beacon was voted Trade Publisher of the Year by the Literary Market Place 33 See also Edit Literature portalList of English language book publishing companies List of university presses Skinner House Books another book publisher of the UUA specializing in books for Unitarian UniversalistsReferences Edit Publishers Group UK Publishers Bisbort Alan 2008 Media Scandals ABC CLIO ISBN 978 0 313 34766 5 Among left wing publishers have been stalwarts like Beacon Press Beacon Press Celebrates 150 Years of Publishing UU World The Magazine of the Unitarian Universalist Association September October 2004 Retrieved 2007 09 26 Wilson 2004 p 209 UUA The Pentagon Papers then and Now Unitarian Universalists Confronting Government Secrecy Archived from the original on 2009 09 04 Retrieved 2010 12 16 Our Members Association of University Presses Retrieved January 30 2023 Association of American University Presses Membership Directory Archived from the original on 27 September 2007 Retrieved 2007 09 26 Blanshard Paul 1948 American Freedom and Catholic Power Boston MA Beacon Press Revised 2nd edition 1958 Blanshard Paul American freedom and Catholic power Boston Beacon Press Second Edition January 1 1958 Zinn Howard 1964 SNCC The New Abolitionists Beacon Press ISBN 9781608462995 Wolff Robert Paul Barrington Moore Jr Herbert Marcuse A Critique of Pure Tolerance Boston Beacon Press 1965 ISBN 978 0807015599 King Jr Martin Luther Where Do We Go from Here Chaos or Community Beacon Press Boston 1967 ISBN 978 0 8070 0067 0 G Raymond Janice 1979 The transsexual empire the making of the she male Boston Beacon Press ISBN 0807021644 OCLC 4529467 Baldwin James July 9 1984 Notes of a Native Son Boston MA Beacon Press ISBN 978 0 8070 6431 3 Miller Jean Baker 1987 Toward a New Psychology of Women Boston MA Beacon Press ISBN 978 080702909 1 Daly Mary November 12 1990 Gyn Ecology The Metaethics of Radical Feminism Boston MA Beacon Press ISBN 978 0 8070 1413 4 Marcuse Herbert October 1 1964 One Dimensional Man Studies in the Ideology of Advanced Industrial Society Boston MA Beacon Press ISBN 978 0 8070 1417 2 Canada Geoffrey January 31 1995 Fist Stick Knife Gun Boston MA Beacon Press ISBN 978 0 8070 0423 4 Meier Deborah November 12 1995 The Power of Their Ideas Lessons for America from a Small School in Harlem Boston MA Beacon Press ISBN 978 0 8070 3113 1 West Cornel May 25 2001 Race Matters Boston MA Beacon Press ISBN 978 0 8070 0972 7 Oliver Mary November 15 2005 New and Selected Poems Volume One Boston MA Beacon Press ISBN 978 0 8070 6878 6 Oliver Mary September 2 2007 Thirst Boston MA Beacon Press ISBN 978 0 8070 6897 7 Khalidi Rashid April 15 2005 Resurrecting Empire Western Footprints and America s Perilous Path Boston MA Beacon Press ISBN 978 0 8070 0235 3 Frankl Viktor June 14 2006 Man s Search for Meaning Boston MA Beacon Press ISBN 978 0 8070 1429 5 Hall Meredith April 11 2007 Without a Map Boston MA Beacon Press ISBN 978 0 8070 7273 8 MacDonald Michael Patrick October 4 2007 All Souls A Family Story from Southie Boston MA Beacon Press ISBN 978 0 8070 7213 4 Lane Frederick S June 1 2008 The Court and the Cross Boston MA Beacon Press pp 288 pages ISBN 978 0 8070 4424 7 DiAngelo Robin Contrib Michael Eric Dyson White Fragility Beacon Press Boston 2018 ISBN 9780807047422 Saini Angela Superior Beacon Press Boston 2019 ISBN 9780807076910 Beacon Press to reissue Martin Luther King Jr s books UU World Blog June 1 2009 Philocrites Beacon Press launches Beacon Broadside blog New England Book Awards Archived from the original on 2007 07 24 Retrieved 2007 09 26 History and MissionFurther reading EditWilson Susan Beacon s Modern Era 1945 2003 Journal of Scholarly Publishing 2004 35 4 pp 200 209 onlineExternal links EditBeacon Press s Home Page Democracy Now Special How the Pentagon Papers Came to Be Published by the Beacon Press Mike Gravel Daniel Ellsberg and Robert West audio video and transcript Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Beacon Press amp oldid 1141796041, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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