Howard Zinn - Dead at 87

[Aetius Romulous]

From the Boston Globe

"Howard Zinn, the Boston University historian and political activist who was an early opponent of US involvement in Vietnam and a leading faculty critic of BU president John Silber, died of a heart attack today in Santa Monica, Calif, where he was traveling, his family said. He was 87.

"His writings have changed the consciousness of a generation, and helped open new paths to understanding and its crucial meaning for our lives," Noam Chomsky, the left-wing activist and MIT professor, once wrote of Dr. Zinn. "When action has been called for, one could always be confident that he would be on the front lines, an example and trustworthy guide."

[Rajiv]

Re: Howard Zinn - Dead at 87

A loss of a good intellect. Studs Terkel was another one I was sorry to see pass away in 2008

[Thailandnotes]

Re: Howard Zinn - Dead at 87

If you had to come up with a top ten list of Americans who could think and write clearly about the USA, Howard Zinn would be on it and near the top. (Thanks, Mel, for the introduction.)

[don]

Re: Howard Zinn - Dead at 87

Howard Zinn: The Historian Who Made History

By Dave Zirin

Howard Zinn, my hero, teacher, and friend died of a heart attack on Wednesday at the age of 87. With his death, we lose a man who did nothing less than rewrite the narrative of the United States. We lose a historian who also made history.

Anyone who believes that the United States is immune to radical politics never attended a lecture by Howard Zinn. The rooms would be packed to the rafters, as entire families, black, white and brown, would arrive to hear their own history made humorous as well as heroic. "What matters is not who's sitting in the White House. What matters is who's sitting in!" he would say with a mischievous grin. After this casual suggestion of civil disobedience, the crowd would burst into laughter and applause.

Only Howard could pull that off because he was entirely authentic. When he spoke against poverty it was from the perspective of someone who had to work in the shipyards during the Great Depression. When he spoke against war, it was from the perspective of someone who flew as a bombardier during World War II, and was forever changed by the experience. When he spoke against racism it was from the perspective of someone who taught at Spelman College during the civil rights movement and was arrested sitting in with his students.

And of course, when he spoke about history, it was from the perspective of having written A People's History of the United States, a book that has sold more than two million copies and changed the lives of countless people. Count me among them. When I was 17 and picked up a dog-eared copy of Zinn's book, I thought history was about learning that the Magna Carta was signed in 1215. I couldn't tell you what the Magna Carta was, but I knew it was signed in 1215. Howard took this history of great men in powdered wigs and turned it on its pompous head.

In Howard's book, the central actors were the runaway slaves, the labor radicals, the masses and the misfits. It was history writ by Robin Hood, speaking to a desire so many share: to actually make history instead of being history's victim. His book came alive in December with the debut of The People Speak on the History Channel as actors, musicians, and poets, brought Zinn's book alive.

Howard was asked once whether his praise of dissent and protest was divisive. He answered beautifully: "Yes, dissent and protest are divisive, but in a good way, because they represent accurately the real divisions in society. Those divisions exist - the rich, the poor - whether there is dissent or not, but when there is no dissent, there is no change. The dissent has the possibility not of ending the division in society, but of changing the reality of the division. Changing the balance of power on behalf of the poor and the oppressed."

[reallife]

Re: Howard Zinn - Dead at 87

I think he died when he heard that the US Supreme Court had granted control of our democracy to the mega-corporations. The justices should be impeached, removed from office and replaced with honorable people who will place the values of human beings, citizens of our nation, ahead of the corporate boards of multi-national corporations who are now free to buy our election process and turn us back into serfs.

[Thailandnotes]

Re: Howard Zinn - Dead at 87

http://www.commondreams.org/video/2010/01/28

"we've forgotten how change can happen."

"If the gods had intended for people to vote, they would have given us candidates."

[mooncliff]

Re: Howard Zinn - Dead at 87

Audiobook excerpt

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xwq_jiTjAuY