The Passionate Odyssey of Aris Anagnos

This is the autobiography of Aris Anagnos, who participated in the great anti-Nazi resistance during World War II and went on to become a celebrated human rights organizer and philanthropist. Anagnos tells a political history from the 1930s through 1968. This is completed by an interview with Eric Mann in which he completes the story of his journey until today focusing on his work as a U.S. ally of the people of El Salvador and Nicaragua. Beautifully written in non-fiction narrative Aris Odyssey brings to life a man of principle and achievement who can tell his own story with the perspective of an historian and the charm of a novelist.

Aris Anagnos in his own words

The British and Churchill had the ultimate goal of destroying the Soviet Union. He wanted the war to be prolonged, forcing the Soviet Union to fight against the Germans even longer alone suffering 20 million casualties. Then the British fought the anti-fascist resistance in Greece. They feared a democratic post-war government in Greece. There was the battle of Athens which lasted 33 days and the British bombed the working class of Athens, something the Germans hadn t done.

Carolyn and I observed in Eastern Europe in 1968 that socialism had accomplished the harmonious political and economic co-existence of diverse nationalities in Yugoslavia, had brought democratic egalitarianism in Bulgaria, free health care for all in Romania and the adjoining countries, was proceeding with intense reconstruction in the Soviet Union and succeeded to have a complete absence of beggars in Hungary.

When I began to make some money in real estate people asked, How can a Marxist like you be interested in making money?

I always replied,

The revolution needs money.

Often the choices we make are not the choices we want, they re the choices we re given.