Policymakers, civic leaders, and scholars have increasingly focused their attention over the last decade-and-a-half on the importance of voluntary participation in civil society. From George H. W. Bush's Thousand Points of Light to Bill Clinton's AmeriCorps to George W. Bush's faith-based initiatives, it is undeniable that communities are looking to increase their levels of charity and voluntarism in the provision of public goods and services.What mobilizes giving and volunteering?...

In response to the events following September 11, a number of leading cultural studies and interpretive qualitative researchers write from their own experiences and hearts. Their essays-by noted scholars Kellner, Fine, McLaren, Richardson, Denzin, Giroux and others-are collected in this volume, and were written in crisis within days and weeks of September 11. The immediacy of their writing is refreshing, and reflects the varied emotional and critical responses that bring meaning to this ca...