Rebel Heart: Against the Wind - Paperback

by Marietta Anderson (Author)

Rebel Heart invites readers to reflect on the historic social and political shifts of the 1950s, '60s, and '70s. Marietta Anderzon, both witness and participant, recounts a life shaped by rebellion, resilience, betrayal, and transformation.

Growing up in small-town Kansas, Marietta learns early to stand her ground-facing down bullies, defending the marginalized, and once fending off a kidnapper with a pocketknife. Debate hones her voice, and by the turbulent 1960s, she's primed to challenge authority, confront gender discrimination, and push back against censorship.

In college, she meets a brilliant, stylish debater with a past connection. They fall in love, marry, and move to Massachusetts, where he pursues graduate studies and she, in fragile health, immerses herself in art, literature, and politics while working on campus.

They later settle in East Tennessee, stepping into the era's frontline struggles: civil rights, war, censorship, and academic freedom. Marietta joins the Selma voting rights march, where police confiscate her camera. When her husband supports flag-burning protestors, the university president retaliates by contacting the draft board to have him reclassified as 1-A. Soon after, a burning cross wrapped in an American flag appears on their lawn.

Undeterred, Marietta completes her undergraduate degree and begins graduate school. But when she distributes anti-war leaflets, she is suspended-sparking a First Amendment legal battle that reaches the U.S. Supreme Court. Under fire from their community, they endure threats, harassment, and isolation.

They eventually relocate to coal country in southwest Virginia, build a home, and try to rebuild. But the stresses of activism, cultural change, infidelity, and disillusionment strain their marriage. Later, they return to Kansas to start over, opening a small business far from academia and protests.