Author Nat Hentoff Dies at 91

[DonViejo]

Source: The Daily Beast



Author Nat Hentoff died on Saturday, his son Nick said on Twitter. He was 91. Nick Hentoff said his father “died surrounded by family listening to Billie Holiday.” Nathan Irving Hentoff was also a jazz critic, having written articles on the subject for The Daily Beast and numerous other publications. Hentoff, a civil libertarian, was also the author of 35 books. In the 1960s, he joined Malcolm X in calling for racial equality and civil rights. Hantoff wrote for The Village Voice for 50 years.

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[Va Lefty]

1. ...

[vi5]

2. Hentoff was one of my biggest influences...

As a teenager in the 80's I waited eagerly each week for the Village Voice and eagerly turned to his column first thing. He is more than anyone responsible for my being a civil liberty/free speech absolutist. Especially reading him defend things that on first instinct I was aghast at. Then realizing that free speech wasn't a pick and choose right. I didn't always agree with him as he was also staunchly anti-choice, but he did so much in forming who I was and who I am to this day still.


Rest in Peace, Nat.

[Scurrilous]

3. K & R

[Paladin]

4. One of the great ones. RIP. (nt)

[philosslayer]

5. He was "pro-life" i.e anti-choice

Yet supposedly progressive. Which makes me doubt he was progressive at all.

[DonViejo]

6. Nat defined himself as a Humanist and yes, he was pro-life....

He always said, "I'm a Humanist and as such, I cannot take a human life."

[philosslayer]

7. He could put all the fancy language around it that he wanted....

But he was still anti-choice and anti-woman. Not someone to be commemorated nor lauded.

[former9thward]

9. Glad you are not in charge of coalition building.

[PlanetBev]

8. He used to be pro-choice then turned anti-choice

That said, he once attended an anti-choice conference and then admitted that he found himself surrounded by the very people he couldn't stand.