Chesa Boudin
Encyclopedia
Chesa Boudin is an American progressive writer and lecturer, focused on Latin American issues. A Rhodes Scholar, he graduated from Yale Law School in 2011.
and David Gilbert, were radical anti-war activists and members of the Weather Underground. His mother's family had a long left-wing history. His great-great-uncle was Louis Boudin, a Marxist theorist, lawyer, and author of the acclaimed Government By Judiciary. His grandfather, attorney Leonard Boudin
, had represented such controversial clients as Judith Coplon
, Fidel Castro
, and Paul Robeson
. Chesa Boudin's great uncle was the famed independent journalist I.F. Stone. Chesa Boudin's uncle, Michael Boudin
, is currently a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
.
When Chesa Boudin was 14 months old, his parents were arrested for their role in the fatal Brinks Robbery (1981)
in Rockland County, New York. His mother was sentenced to 20 years to life and his father to 75 years to life. Chesa Boudin was adopted by Bill Ayers
and Bernardine Dohrn
, and raised as one of their three sons. His mother, Kathy Boudin, was released under parole supervision in 2003.
for high school and Yale University
for undergrad, where he majored in history. After college he went to Oxford University on a Rhodes Scholarship
. At Oxford he earned two masters degrees, one in Forced Migration
and the other in Public Policy in Latin America.
and in dozens of newspapers and radio programs. He lectures in English and Spanish at venues across the US and on three continents on topics including the impact of parental incarceration, Latin American politics, community service
in universities and US foreign policy. He has contributed to The Nation
magazine, and several other periodicals.
Boudin translated Understanding the Bolivarian Revolution: Hugo Chavez
Speaks with Marta Harnecker
into English (Monthly Review Press, 2005), co-edited Letters From Young Activists: Today's Young Rebels Speak Out, (Nation Books, 2005), and co-wrote The Venezuelan Revolution: 100 Questions – 100 Answers (Thunder's Mouth Press, 2006). His latest book, Gringo: A Coming of Age in Latin America, was released in April 2009 from Scribner, an imprint of Simon & Schuster
. The book received largely negative reviews in several national papers including the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the San Francisco Chronicle
. The Times wrote that Boudin's "prose sounds more than anything like a college admissions essay" that "belongs in a yoga magazine, not between hard covers." The Post called the book a "mind-numbing rant" with "nothing passionate, incandescent or even remotely revelatory." According to the review, the "typically uninspired" book "reveals a remarkable lack of sophistication, both as an argument against free-market imperialism and as a work of travel journalism."
Early Life and Family
Chesa Boudin was born in New York, NY, on August 21, 1980. His parents, Kathy BoudinKathy Boudin
Kathy Boudin is a former American radical who was convicted in 1984 of felony murder for her participation in an armed robbery that resulted in the killing of three people. She later became a public health expert while in prison...
and David Gilbert, were radical anti-war activists and members of the Weather Underground. His mother's family had a long left-wing history. His great-great-uncle was Louis Boudin, a Marxist theorist, lawyer, and author of the acclaimed Government By Judiciary. His grandfather, attorney Leonard Boudin
Leonard Boudin
Leonard B. Boudin was an American civil liberties attorney and left-wing activist who represented Daniel Ellsberg of Pentagon Papers fame and Dr. Benjamin Spock, the author of Baby and Child Care, who advocated draft resistance during the Vietnam War...
, had represented such controversial clients as Judith Coplon
Judith Coplon
Judith Coplon Socolov was one of the first major figures tried in the United States for spying for the former Soviet Union; problems in her trials in 1949–50 had a profound influence on espionage prosecutions during the McCarthy era.-Work and arrest:Coplon obtained a job in the Department of...
, Fidel Castro
Fidel Castro
Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz is a Cuban revolutionary and politician, having held the position of Prime Minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976, and then President from 1976 to 2008. He also served as the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba from the party's foundation in 1961 until 2011...
, and Paul Robeson
Paul Robeson
Paul Leroy Robeson was an American concert singer , recording artist, actor, athlete, scholar who was an advocate for the Civil Rights Movement in the first half of the twentieth century...
. Chesa Boudin's great uncle was the famed independent journalist I.F. Stone. Chesa Boudin's uncle, Michael Boudin
Michael Boudin
Michael Boudin is a Judge and former Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.Boudin was born in New York City, the son of the civil liberties attorney Leonard Boudin and older brother of Weather Underground member Kathy Boudin. He received a B.A. from Harvard...
, is currently a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:* District of Maine* District of Massachusetts...
.
When Chesa Boudin was 14 months old, his parents were arrested for their role in the fatal Brinks Robbery (1981)
Brinks robbery (1981)
The Brink's robbery of 1981 was an armed robbery committed on October 20, 1981, which was carried out by Black Liberation Army members; including Jeral Wayne Williams , Donald Weems , Samuel Smith, Nathaniel Burns , Cecilio "Chui" Ferguson, Samuel Brown ; several former members of the Weather...
in Rockland County, New York. His mother was sentenced to 20 years to life and his father to 75 years to life. Chesa Boudin was adopted by Bill Ayers
Bill Ayers
William Charles "Bill" Ayers is an American elementary education theorist and a former leader in the movement that opposed U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. He is known for his 1960s activism as well as his current work in education reform, curriculum, and instruction...
and Bernardine Dohrn
Bernardine Dohrn
Bernardine Rae Dohrn is a former leader of the American anti-Vietnam War radical organization, Weather Underground. She is an Associate Professor of Law at Northwestern University School of Law and the immediate past Director of Northwestern's Children and Family Justice Center...
, and raised as one of their three sons. His mother, Kathy Boudin, was released under parole supervision in 2003.
Education
Chesa Boudin attended the University of Chicago Laboratory SchoolsUniversity of Chicago Laboratory Schools
The University of Chicago Laboratory Schools is a private, co-educational day school in Chicago, Illinois. It is affiliated with the University of Chicago...
for high school and Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
for undergrad, where he majored in history. After college he went to Oxford University on a Rhodes Scholarship
Rhodes Scholarship
The Rhodes Scholarship, named after Cecil Rhodes, is an international postgraduate award for study at the University of Oxford. It was the first large-scale programme of international scholarships, and is widely considered the "world's most prestigious scholarship" by many public sources such as...
. At Oxford he earned two masters degrees, one in Forced Migration
Forced migration
Forced migration refers to the coerced movement of a person or persons away from their home or home region...
and the other in Public Policy in Latin America.
Public Life
The front page of the NY Times profiled Boudin when he won the Rhodes Scholarship in 2002. He has also been interviewed on CNNCNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
and in dozens of newspapers and radio programs. He lectures in English and Spanish at venues across the US and on three continents on topics including the impact of parental incarceration, Latin American politics, community service
Community service
Community service is donated service or activity that is performed by someone or a group of people for the benefit of the public or its institutions....
in universities and US foreign policy. He has contributed to The Nation
The Nation
The Nation is the oldest continuously published weekly magazine in the United States. The periodical, devoted to politics and culture, is self-described as "the flagship of the left." Founded on July 6, 1865, It is published by The Nation Company, L.P., at 33 Irving Place, New York City.The Nation...
magazine, and several other periodicals.
Boudin translated Understanding the Bolivarian Revolution: Hugo Chavez
Hugo Chávez
Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías is the 56th and current President of Venezuela, having held that position since 1999. He was formerly the leader of the Fifth Republic Movement political party from its foundation in 1997 until 2007, when he became the leader of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela...
Speaks with Marta Harnecker
Marta Harnecker
Marta Harnecker is a Chilean sociologist, political scientist, journalist and activist. Harnecker, a descendant of Austrian immigrants, was a Roman Catholic in her childhood. She visited Cuba in 1960-Early life:...
into English (Monthly Review Press, 2005), co-edited Letters From Young Activists: Today's Young Rebels Speak Out, (Nation Books, 2005), and co-wrote The Venezuelan Revolution: 100 Questions – 100 Answers (Thunder's Mouth Press, 2006). His latest book, Gringo: A Coming of Age in Latin America, was released in April 2009 from Scribner, an imprint of Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster, Inc., a division of CBS Corporation, is a publisher founded in New York City in 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. It is one of the four largest English-language publishers, alongside Random House, Penguin and HarperCollins...
. The book received largely negative reviews in several national papers including the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
. The Times wrote that Boudin's "prose sounds more than anything like a college admissions essay" that "belongs in a yoga magazine, not between hard covers." The Post called the book a "mind-numbing rant" with "nothing passionate, incandescent or even remotely revelatory." According to the review, the "typically uninspired" book "reveals a remarkable lack of sophistication, both as an argument against free-market imperialism and as a work of travel journalism."
External links
- Gringo: A Coming-of-Age in Latin America, by Chesa Boudin A Review by Richard Gonzales, San Francisco Chronicle, April 26, 2009