Oneworld acquires new book on 'the conspiracy trial that rocked America'

Oneworld has bought a book on "the conspiracy trial that divided America" by writer and historian Arvin Alaigh.

Commissioning editor Rida Vaquas bought UK and Commonwealth rights to Double-Crossed from Matthew Marland at RCW. Publication is scheduled for summer 2027.

The book "reveals how in 1972, six Catholic priests and nuns, and a political scientist from Pakistan, stood trial for conspiracy against the United States, charged with a fantastical plot to kidnap Henry Kissinger".

The description goes on: "All seven were convinced anti-war activists, determined to stop the Vietnam War through non-violent resistance. Two, the brothers Dan and Phil Berrigan, had previously gone on the run from the FBI after burning draft cards. In an astonishing story featuring a double agent, a secret marriage, surveillance and betrayal, Double-Crossed charts how the Harrisburg Seven trial saved anti-war activism despite Nixon’s attempts to quash it."

Arvin Alaigh is a writer, activist, historian and PhD student at the University of Cambridge. His work has been featured in publications such as the Nation, the Baffler, the Commonweal, Dissent and the Drift.

He said: "The story of the mid-century Catholic Left and the Harrisburg Seven trial is a fascinating, albeit understudied, episode in the history of anti-war politics. With the increasing criminalisation of protest across the UK, the story proves to be chillingly pertinent and offers one historical example of how activists confronted – and resisted – warmaking."

Vaquas said: "The story of the Catholic resistance to the Vietnam War and the lengths the US government was willing to go to suppress non-violent protest only grows more vital to tell as Israel’s war in Gaza continues alongside the proscription of direct-action groups such as Palestine Action."