Introduction

If you are committed to creating positive social change, a student or well into your career, think back to the vision that you first had when you embarked on your life work and how you were prepared to “speak truth to power.” The philosopher Michel Foucault heralded the ancient Greek term “parrhesia,” which resembles this spirit, in which the speaker:

uses his freedom and chooses frankness instead of persuasion, truth instead of falsehood or silence, the risk of death instead of life and security, criticism instead of flattery, and moral duty instead of self-interest and moral apathy (Foucault 1983).

This book is about how to help you strengthen your resolve or rekindle your vision if you think you have lost it. It presents the successes of individuals and dynamic communities around the world that are rejecting dysfunctional health care systems that destroy cultures and environments. It demonstrates how they can be replaced with safer, more appropriate models of care, focusing on how we can better treat human beings as they come into the world as newborns as a projection of how we can create a healthier future for the communities in which they will grow up.