After WWII the GIs returning to Athens, Tennessee discovered that while they had been fighting for freedom in Europe a group of corrupt politicians and their enforcers had tightened their grip on the county. The corruption had existed in the county for generations, but now that the returning soldiers had tasted the ability to fight dictatorship and win, they wanted freedom for their families.
Fighting the corruption ended in a bloody battle. In the aftermath, the GIs realized that they could be in big legal trouble, so they took a vow of silence. Even their families didn’t know the whole story. Now many years later, DeRose believed that the full story should be told. He tracked down any remaining participants, talked to relatives, and read documents. This book is the result.
I had never heard of the shocking incident, so I found the book an eye opener. DeRose does a good job of presenting all the background as well as the battle in a readable way. While the material in the beginning detailing the history of the settlement of Athens and how the corruption started was interesting, I found it a bit slow. I was eager to see how the GIs battled the entrenched politicians and won.
I recommend this book to anyone interested in politics and history. It’s a good lesson about how freedom is lost and what it can take to regain it.
I received this book from St. Martin’s Press for this review.
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