Howard Zinn

Friday, January 29, 2010

On Wednesday Howard Zinn, author of our class book A People's History of the United States, passed away at the age of 87.

Howard (he wouldn't approve of being refered to as "Zinn") was a personal hero of mine. He grew up in a working class Jewish family in Boston and served as a bombadier in World War II. Following the war he became a civil rights advocate and a professor at Spelman College. He was later fired from Spelman for participating in a Student Non Violent Coordinating Committee protest against the college's orders. He was insubordinate, and I loved him for that.

In 1980, while teaching at Boston University, he published A People's History. His argument was history was subjective and not objective. He argued most governments supported the status quo and not the people. He argued no writer is without bias and nor should they claim to be.

I didn't agree with everything Howard said or wrote, but I admired him nonetheless. He was a tireless advocate for peace and social justice.

I would tell Howard to rest in peace, but he wouldn't want that--he'd prefer to protest and raise some hell.

While our students might dread hauling around his voluminous book, he was an outstanding writer whose impact influenced generations of future leaders. I hope our students learn from his example--and whether they agree with him or not--we can all gain hope and inspiration from his example.