The Incommunicados

Incommunicados is a collection of unanswered letters to public officials and other notable figures from iconoclasts Ralph Nader and Bruce Fein. The project was edited by Francesco Desantis, Outreach Coordinator at the Center for Study of Responsive Law.

This booklet and Ralph Nader’s introduction meticulously document the self-ruinous disdain by Congress and the executive branch for thoughtful citizen input into government policies and practices. Citizen petitions, letters, memoranda, and articles are routinely unacknowledged and universally categorized as unworthy of a substantive response. Even speaking to a live person in a congressional office as opposed to leaving a voice mail has become a herculean test of endurance and patience.

Caleb Zakarin is the Assistant Editor of the New Books Network.