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Steve Masover’s new novel explores the range of tactics used by protesters to get media coverage, from shutting down the Bay Bridge to blowing up a research lab.Masover explains that he once participated in a protest that blocked the Golden Gate Bridge to dramatize the AIDS crisis in the late 1980’s. His new novel, Consequence, is set in San Francisco in 2004, and the characters include a group of activists dedicated to nonviolence who hope to draw media coverage by stopping traffic on the bridge while they unfurl a big banner. One member, Christopher, is a writer who engages in encrypted online chats with Chagall, who is mastermind of the scheme to blow up a research lab. Christopher agrees to write a manifesto for Chagall’s action, without knowing its details.
Masover captures the time and place quite well, and portions of the book read like an action thriller. In our conversation, we talk about the dilemmas faced by activists who are ignored by the media and elected leaders, and the desperation felt during the Bush-Cheney era. We also digress for an interesting chat about 9/11 truthers and conspiracy theories.
Get more info on Steve Masover and his first novel here.