"Parker Pillsbury - one of the most important and least examined anti-slavery activists of the nineteenth century - was a man of intense contradictions. Was he a disruptive eccentric who lashed out at authority (proclaiming Lincoln the worst president in the nation's history) or a sensitive visionary committed to social justice?".

"In the first full-length biography of this remarkable American, Stacey M. Robertson depicts a man who became a strong voice in the antebellum period. Criss-crossing the North, Pillsbury denounced slavery to all who would listen. In his travels, he endured the violent rage of mob opposition, but he also received the passionate support of fellow advocates.".

"Pillsbury continued his radical crusade long after the Civil War, demanding equal rights for women, workers, and African Americans. Robertson reveals how Pillsbury - one of the nation's first male feminists - struggled to reject the notion of male dominance in his political philosophy, public activism, and personal relationships."--BOOK JACKET.