Two books for Howard Zinn
“The poets and artists among us seem to have a clearer understanding of the disease of nationalism.”
–Howard Zinn
Historian and activist Howard Zinn died at the age of 87 this week. Zinn is best known for his fiery debates with liberals and conservatives alike. His 1980 work A People’s History of the United States (HarperCollins) became a bestseller, receiving endorsements from movie stars and activists alike. The book explored an alternative view of history that celebrated changemakers and eschewed a purely materialist reading of history — social justice activists receive more mention than politicians and the Morgans and Carnegies.
If you like A People’s History, check out James W. Loewens’ Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your High School History Textbook Got Wrong. Loewen systematically surveyed twelve high school history textbooks and discovered surprising results. None featured any photos of the victims of war, most sugar-coated slavery, and any conflict that could be seen as a ‘loss’ was avoided. Worse, the authors didn’t have any good reason for omitting so many crucial truths: the books weren’t being censored.
Did you know, for example, that Helen Keller wasn’t famous for overcoming her disabilities during her time, but for being a fervent social activist who championed women’s equality? Or that Woodrow Wilson’s own racism helped tank the League of Nations, the predecessor to the United Nations?
Loewen has since followed Lies My Teacher Told Me with Teaching What Really Happened: How To Avoid the Tyranny of Textbooks and Get Students Excited About Doing History (Teacher’s College Press, 2009).
–Deji Olukotun
