Aaron J. Leonard is a writer and historian with a particular focus on the history of radicalism and governmental suppression. He is the author of Heavy Radicals: The FBI's Secret War on America's Maoists, and A Threat of the First Magnitude, both with Conor A. Gallagher, and The Folk Singers and the Bureau. He has a BA with a dual major in history and social science (magna cum laude) from New York University. He lives in Los Angeles.