Howard Zinntennial

Submitted by josef_k___ t3_z6kjwu in boston

Friday was the 100-year anniversary of Howard Zinn's birth (who of course taught at BU for 20+ years and continued to be active in Boston thereafter) -- Amy Goodman had a good show commemorating him the other day I thought I'd share:

https://www.democracynow.org/shows/2022/11/25

I was lucky enough to see him speak at The Old South Church soon after I graduated and moved to Boston, not long before he passed.

Thankfully, my hero Chomsky is still alive and active at 93 -- the photo above is from howardzinn.org where he had this funny thing to say about giving speeches with Chomsky:

"Like rock and roll groups, I was the warm-up. I had a lot of emo­tional statements surrounding several facts. Noam would come on with one vaguely emotional statement and 7,000 facts. It seemed to me a good combination."

I've only read Zinn's most famous work but still, what a selfless and important historian and activist. The democracynow link above has lots of interesting stuff on him, including in his own words how his time as a bombardier in WW2 contributed to his future dissidence and activism.

https://preview.redd.it/ae99j0f4vl2a1.jpg?width=700&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c22c4454a393eb54a3fff2e67b8c1aa8c91c9332

37

Comments

You must log in or register to comment.

BostonUniStudent t1_iy21tfk wrote

I met Zinn on campus at UMass Lowell many years ago. I was much younger. Still in high school. He gave me some great life advice.

13

Difficult-Ad3518 t1_iy2vc50 wrote

What did he say?

4

BostonUniStudent t1_iy381xt wrote

First, he discouraged me from joining the Army. Which I took under advisement and still joined. He had a lot of regret about his time in the service.

Second, I thought maybe there was something fishy about the way senator wellstone had died in a mysterious plane accident right after being one of the lone voices of dissent against the war in Iraq. Zinn understood what I meant. Kind of sighed. The road to conspiracy theories used to be more left-oriented. CIA crack theories, World Bank, etc. He explained that there's enough to worry about that we have confirmation is real. There is a lot above the water to fix first. We can worry about the rest of the iceberg after working on the tip.

Lastly, he gave me some follow-up book recommendations and recommended law. I wound up going to BU and finishing law school recently.

18

Cal__Trask t1_iy3ewnu wrote

Pure curiosity; was his advice about the army correct in your case?

2

BostonUniStudent t1_iy3fase wrote

It was hard for me at the time to understand why he would regret fighting the Nazis. But I think he just had a natural aversion to civilian deaths.

I don't regret my time serving. I don't think I had to do anything regrettable. I have friends who did though.

8

I_Am_U t1_iy4d24c wrote

> It was hard for me at the time to understand why he would regret fighting the Nazis.

In mid-April 1945, the war in Europe was essentially over. Everyone knew it was ending, but Howard Zinn was still ordered to fire bomb the Germans stationed near Royan, France. It was the first use of napalm in warfare actually. His actions wound up burning most of the French men, women, and children in the town to death. This badly traumatized him and likely explains his reluctance to encourage people to fight for the military.

5

josef_k___ OP t1_iy4fu32 wrote

"Jellied gasoline" they told the bombardiers it was (napalm, they basically just wanted to test it out)

3

frauenarzZzt t1_iy406za wrote

Had a short-lived acquaintance with him in his final years which included dinner with him and his wife Roslyn at their home in Auburndale once after meeting him walking down the street and actually having his book in my bag. It's nice to say things like "He was a nice man" which is true, but he emphasized being a good person. I miss him.

5

tbootsbrewing t1_iy35rf9 wrote

Honor his birth by dining at his favorite coffee shop- the Dunks on JFK in Harvard Sq.

4

occasional_cynic t1_iy3lh8u wrote

So a site called "Democracy Now" is commemorating a Marxist who celebrated and supported undemocratic regimes?

−11

frauenarzZzt t1_iy41107 wrote

It's always amazing how people who don't have the slightest idea what Marx wrote of are the first to condemn anything that might be associated with the idea that people should have the right to profit from the fruits of their labor.

5

josef_k___ OP t1_iy3v3q7 wrote

"What is this a communist country!? I'm sorry I thought this was America!" -- That's all I hear when I read your comment

4

occasional_cynic t1_iy42ilr wrote

"Communism is a perfectly legitimate and virtuous form of government that would work fine if we just try it again."

Zinn is not a historian, and his book is nothing more than propaganda, and almost universally dismissed by actual historians. Much like Marx's theories itself being dismissed by actual workers, while being embraced by academia, even in his lifetime.

0

DunkinRadio t1_iy3sznp wrote

Yup. They also lionize Castro and Ortega. Boggles the mind.

−5