Book excerpt: Revolutionary Hillbilly is a history book, an organizer's notebook, and an autobiography. These are stories of unity against poverty and racism. Hy Thurman is a hillbilly and a revolutionary organizer. As a co-founder of the Young Patriots Organization, Thurman helped organize poor white communities in alliance with the Illinois Black Panther Party and Young Lords Organization during the Sixties. He is an educator who got his schooling in the fields of Tennessee, his PhD on the streets of Chicago, and his hunger for justice in the back of a patrol car. Revolutionary Hillbilly is unique because it is a first person chronicle of the unfolding of landmark events of the 1960's. Hy Thurman's book provides an insiders view of how coalitions can form and the group dynamics that can keep these movements vibrant. It is an invaluable resource for historians and activists alike.