Howard Zinn

Howard Zinn
Howard Zinnwas an American historian, playwright, and social activist. He was a political science professor at Boston University. Zinn wrote more than twenty books, including his best-selling and influential A People's History of the United States. In 2007, he published a version of it for younger readers, A Young People′s History of the United States...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionHistorian
Date of Birth24 August 1922
CountryUnited States of America
peace war compassion
Should we not begin to redefine patriotism? We need to expand it beyond that narrow nationalism which has caused so much death and suffering. If national boundaries should not be obstacles to trade-we call it globalization-should they also not be obstacles to compassion and generosity?
war peaceful dreamer
Yes, we're dreamers. We want it all. We want a peaceful world. We want an egalitarian world. We don't want war. We don't want capitalism. We want a decent society.
peace war expression
One certain effect of war is to diminish freedom of expression.
peace real people
If there is going to be change, real change, it will have to work its way from the bottom up, from the people themselves. That's how change happens.
peace war slavery
Historically, the most terrible things - war, genocide, and slavery - have resulted not from disobedience, but from obedience.
peace war patriotic
There is no flag large enough to cover the shame of killing innocent people.
inspirational life peace
We don't have to engage in grand, heroic actions to participate in the process of change. Small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can transform the world.
bad beings defiance human itself marvelous
To live now as we think human beings should live, in defiance of all that is bad around us, is itself a marvelous victory.
addiction far greater leaders political scale ugly weapons
The weapons addiction of all our political leaders ... has the same characteristics as drug addiction. It is enormously costly, very dangerous, provokes ugly violence, and is self-perpetuating -- all on a scale far greater than drug addicton.
against capitalism corporate exciting jack joined london movement people period war wonderful writers
People like Eugene Debs, Helen Keller, Emma Goldman, Jack London and Upton Sinclair were wonderful writers who joined the movement against war and injustice, against capitalism and corporate power. That was a very exciting period in American history.
brutality transfers our-time
We must transfer our anger to the brutalities of our time.
democracy doe realms
Civil disobedience is not something outside the realm of democracy. Democracy requires civil disobedience. Without civil disobedience democracy does not exist.
party two public-opinion
In a two-party system, if both parties ignore public opinion, there is no place voters can turn.
fall class people
These people—the employed, the somewhat privileged—are drawn into alliance with the elite. They become the guards of the system, buffers between the upper and lower classes. If they stop obeying, the system falls.