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"During the early Cold War, thousands of Canadians attended events organized by the Canadian-Soviet Friendship Society (CSFS) and subscribed to its publications. The CSFS aimed its message at progressive Canadians, hoping to convince them that the USSR was an egalitarian and enlightened state. Attempting to soften, define and redirect the antagonistic narratives of the day, the CSFS story is one of propaganda and persuasion in Cold War Canada. The CSFS was linked to other groups on the Canadian political left and was consistently lead by Canadian communists. For many years, its leader and best known member was the enigmatic Dyson Carter. Raised in a religious family and educated as a scientist, Carter was a prolific author of both popular scientific and pro-Soviet books, and for many years was the editor of the CSFS's magazine, "Northern Neighbours." Subitlted "Canada's Authorative Independent Magazine Reporting on the U.S.S.R." the magazine featured glossy photo spreads of life in the Soviet Union and upbeat articles on science, medicine, cultural life, and visits to the USSR by Canadians. At the height of the Cold War, Carter claimed the magazine reached 10,000 subscribers across Canada. Using previously unavailable archival sources and oral histories, "Propaganda and Persuasion" looks at the CSFS as a blend of social and political activism, where gender, class, and ethnicity linked communities, and ideology had significance."--

Main description: Colonial Americans were enamored with the rich colors and silky surface of mahogany. As this exotic wood became fashionable, demand for it set in motion a dark, hidden story of human and environmental exploitation. Anderson traces the path from source to sale, revealing how prosperity and desire shaped not just people's lives but the natural world.

"I have a dream" -- From slavery to segregation -- The Montgomery bus boycott -- Crisis in Little Rock -- Sit-ins and freedom rides -- The Birmingham campaign -- The right to vote -- Black power -- Civil rights today -- Timeline -- Essential facts -- Glossary

Intro -- Contents -- List of Illustrations -- Introduction -- 1. A New Species of Elegance -- 2. The Gold Standard of Jamaican Mahogany -- 3. Supplying the Empire with Mahogany -- 4. The Bitters and the Sweets of Trade -- 5. Slavery in the Rain Forest -- 6. Redefining Mahogany in the Early Republic -- 7. Mastering Nature and the Challenge of Mahogany -- 8. Democratizing Mahogany and the Advent of Steam -- 9. An Old Species of Elegance -- Abbreviations -- Notes -- Acknowledgments -- Index.

"In the mid-eighteenth century, colonial Americans became enamored with the rich colors and silky surface of mahogany. This exotic wood, imported from the West Indies and Central America, quickly displaced local furniture woods as the height of fashion. Over the next century, consumer demand for mahogany set in motion elaborate schemes to secure the trees and transform their rough-hewn logs into exquisite objects. But beneath the polished gleam of this furniture lies a darker, hidden story of human and environmental exploitation. Mahogany traces the path of this wood through many hands, from source to sale: from the enslaved African woodcutters, including skilled "huntsmen" who located the elusive trees amidst dense rainforest, to the ship captains, merchants, and timber dealers who scrambled after the best logs, to the skilled cabinetmakers who crafted the wood, and with it the tastes and aspirations of their diverse clientele. As the trees became scarce, however, the search for new sources led to expanded slave labor, vicious competition, and intense international conflicts over this diminishing natural resource. When nineteenth-century American furniture makers turned to other materials, surviving mahogany objects were revalued as antiques evocative of the nation's past."--Publisher's website