James F. Colaianni

James F. Colaianni (August 6, 1922 – October 6, 2016) was an American Catholic lay theologian, author, publisher, lawyer, and activist.

He was born in Paterson, New Jersey in 1922. In 1939, Colaianni graduated from St. Joseph’s High School in Paterson, NJ and attended Seton Hall University. Colaianni served in the US Army during World War II in North Africa, Italy, France and Germany, attaining the rank of technical sergeant. Following his honorable discharge, his subsequent antiwar convictions began to emerge.

Colaianni was admitted to the New Jersey Bar in 1948 after attending John Marshall School of Law. While in law school, he coached high school basketball and won a state championship. In the same period, he produced a series of widely publicized debates between William F. Buckley Jr. of National Review, and William Clancy of the liberal Catholic magazine Commonweal.

He earned his master's degree in Theology from the Institute of Lay Theology (ILT), based at the University of San Francisco, in 1963. As a member of the ILT, he served as Adult Religious Education Director from 1963 to 1965 at our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic parish in Redwood City, California.

He was Managing Editor, Associate Publisher and Religion Editor of Ramparts Magazine from 1965 to 1967. In the August 1966 issue of Ramparts, Colaianni's article, "Napalm: Small Town Diary," documented resistance to the establishment of a napalm plant in Redwood City. It was the first article in the national press to condemn the manufacture and use of napalm in the Vietnam War. Colaianni led a protest of thousands against the use of napalm as a military weapon in Vietnam. He made national news as a spokesperson for the anti-napalm and anti-war movements, appearing on such programs as the NBC Nightly News with Walter Cronkite and the "Huntley-Brinkley Report."

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