Igniting a Fear Praxis for Teaching: Samuel N. Gillian Jr.’s Life and Courage(548 Counterpoints)

With current surging polarities of perspectives, dangerous culture wars and immanent threats to the human social and ecological fabric, it is a good time to rediscover the true meaning of fear through the eyes of a creative and endearingly outrageous educator who taught ‘Fear is not the enemy.’ Through a combination of fi ction and non-fiction, this book offers a fi rst documentation of the philosophy and story of Samuel Nathan Gillian Jr. (1939-2006), an African-American educator-activist from the Bronx, New York. Fisher takes readers on a journey of growth and development with a protagonist named Deana, a sophomore college student, as she comes to understand the radical importance of her Uncle Sammy’s life and work. Embellished with the intellectual rigor of a biography of a wise man, Fisher tracks his own relationship and those who knew and loved Samuel as the tension grows to a pitch in the story. Yet, the real brilliance lies in the psychological, philosophical and spiritual twists Sam Gillian brought forward in two stunning books on fear (2002, 2005) that this book revives. Fisher, who has studied fear systematically since 1989, has never met a unique thinker like Sam Gillian. Through Fisher’s eyes, the special signifi cance of Gillian’s work is brought to the general and well-educated reading public. An essential book for post-secondary education on fear management, a resource guide for school teachers, parents, psychologists, policy makers and anyone who seeks to help humanity establish a sustainable, moral and healthy relationship with fear.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgements – Preface – Introduction – Young People – Party of Freedom and Progress – The Other-Side – More or Less? – So I Thought – Still Gives You Chills – Higher Grounds-1 – Higher Grounds-2 – Higher Grounds-3 – Sobering Fearanalysis – Fear Wars-1 – Fear Wars-2 – Blazing a Solo Trail – Worse Than You – Fearless Psychology – Cannot Hide – Two and Two – Leaders – Index.

About the Author :
R. Michael Fisher, Ph.D., is an artist, educator, lecturer and independent scholar who has coined the word "fearology." He is author of 15 books, including The Fearless Engagement of Four Arrows (Peter Lang, 2018) and The Marianne Williamson Presidential Phenomenon (Peter Lang, 2022). He lives and works in W. Canada.

Review :
I’ve followed Dr. Fisher's work for 20 years on the ways fear shapes our lives. He has emphasized by necessity our pressing gap in education, which his new book elaborates through the teachings of Samuel Gillian. We need to learn from this powerful force in shaping our collective futures. Dr. Fisher’s deep and thrilling work continues to outline both the theoretical dimensions of the issue and its impact on human capacities to live and thrive more sustainably together, with the many practical implications of the work for educators whether in schools, universities, politics, or workplaces. Importantly and timely, his work is even more required to guide us, as now we come face-to-face with intersecting global-local emergencies, in which our capacity to learn from fear will constitute a vital part of any potential solutions. Kent den Heyer, Ph.D Professor & Editor-in-Chief, Canadian Social Studies Department of Secondary Education University of Alberta Edmonton, Alberta Canada R. Michael Fisher, a leading fearologist and critical educator for the 21st century, steps forward with a potent intellectual biography of a great contemporary educator Samuel N. Gillian Jr. to guide us toward better understanding and managing fear. This is Fisher's third illuminating book on an outstanding educator (proceeded by biographies on Four Arrows and Marianne Williamson) who tackles the Fear Problem. While critically assessing why we need alternative worldviews in schooling and adult education today, Fisher’s book on Gillian is accessible and narratively complex. He offers a novel viewpoint into the life and courage of an African American educator who has been unknown to most. Fisher believes a true healthy pedagogy is one that, as Gillian argues, is necessarily steeped in an inquiry into the nature and role of fear. I commend Dr. Fisher on this new work. Arie Kizel Prof. Arie Kizel (PhD) Head, Pedagogical Development of Educational Systems MA Program Dept. of Learning and Instructional Sciences Faculty of Education University of Haifa Co-founder and President, Mediterranean Association for Philosophy with Children