"In your country," Ignacio Martin-Baro remarked to a North American colleague, "it's publish or perish. In ours, it's publish "and" perish." In November 1989 a Salvadoran death squad extinguished his eloquent voice, raised so often and so passionately against oppression in his adopted country. A Spanish-born Jesuit priest trained in psychology at the University of Chicago, Martin-Baro devoted much of his career to making psychology speak to the community as well as to the individual. This collection of his writings, the first in English translation, clarifies Martin-Baro's importance in Latin American psychology and reveals a major force in the field of social theory.

Gathering essays from an array of professional journals, this volume introduces readers to the questions and concerns that shaped Martin-Baro's thinking over several decades: the psychological dimensions of political repression, the impact of violence and trauma on child development and mental health, the use of psychology for political ends, religion as a tool of ideology, and defining the "real" and the "normal" under conditions of state-sponsored violence and oppression, among others. Though grounded in the harsh realities of civil conflict in Central America, these essays have broad relevance in a world where political and social turmoil determines the conditions of daily life for so many. In them we encounter Martin-Baro's humane, impassioned voice, reaffirming the essential connections among mental health, human rights, and the struggle against injustice. His analysis of contemporary social problems, and of the failure of the social sciences to address those problems, permits us to understand not only thesubstance of his contribution to social thought but also his lifelong commitment to the campesinos of El Salvador.

You've parked your carry-on luggage in the overhead bin and glanced at the diagrams stuffed in the elastic pouch, so it's time to stretch your legs and make the usual inquiries. What do you do when you find out that the attractive woman sitting next to you on this flight to Texas is a murderer? A murderer? In these pricey clothes, with this perfect manicure and sophisticated speech? Do you ask to change seats?

Rainbow Blackman, rocking uneasily between titillation and terror on this turbulent trip, keeps her seat and tries to keep her cool, but they're scarcely off the ground before she starts to lose it.

Fasten your seatbelt and come along for the ride. Not since Tolstoy's Kreutzer Sonata has a journey been so busy with criminal confessions and outrageous arguments.