The Agitator: William Bailey and the First American Uprising Against Nazism

With this latest work, Duffy (Double Agent) details how the luxury liner SS Bremen became the symbol of Nazi Germany's reemergence on the world stage. The narrative centers on the life of mostly self-taught Irish immigrant and activist Bill Bailey, from his childhood in New Jersey to his conversion to communism, which led to a life of protest, particularly against the Nazi regime. Each time the SS Bremen berthed in New York harbor flying a flag with the Nazi swastika, Bailey and his associates led a violent protest against the liner by cutting down the flag and throwing it into the water. During a subsequent trial of the "Bremen six" for injuring a New York policeman, the judge, Louis B. Brodsky, emerged as a friend and protector of the protestors and all the men were acquitted. Bailey later left the Communist Party after learning about the violent repressions administered by Joseph Stalin in Russia.