Freedom of Speech; Workers' Rights; Freedom of Belief; Rights in the Home

The covers of these hardbacks simulate brown paper adorned with scuffed newsprint titles and give these extremely useful books an appropriately robust and workaday look. Each title provides clear explanations of key concepts and historical information related to the type of oppression with which it deals. The core of the series however, is a set of case studies which focus on the struggles of named individuals or groups. The level of iniquity revealed by these stories is appalling, and the anger that they provoke is made the more intense by the fact that the vast majority of them are very recent: the background to the hanging of Ken Saro-Wiwa in Nigeria is described, along with the persecution and murder of several lesser known dissidents and activists from around the globe. The role of the prosperous world in perpetuating the poverty of those who produce its luxuries is clearly implied.

Incidents which provide grounds for hope are also related, and each book contains a list of addresses of campaigning organisations. The tone of the writing is cool and questioning. Illustrations consist of contemporary photographs with some archival material. This is an excellent, thought provoking set of books.