This rousing documentary uses Howard Zinn's life to tell the story of
political activism in the 20th Century and beyond, from the
anti-Fascist protests of the late '30s and early '40s, through WWII and
post-war unionism, to the civil rights movement in the South, the
Vietnam War, and now, Iraq. Zinn has been an active participant in all of these movements, giving a white, academic, radical voice to people
fighting for respect and justice around the world, often risking his
own life and livelihood.
A shipyard worker when WWII broke out, Zinn saw first hand the damage of war when he signed up for
the U.S. Air Force. Amazing
color footage of the first rough, hand-made WWII napalm bombs lend a
startling vividness to Zinn's description of his understanding,
post-war, of the deadly reality of a soldier's job.
With narration taken entirely from Zinn's own writing, read by actor
Matt Damon, filmmakers Deb Ellis and Denis Mueller skillfully capture
the spirit of Zinn's life work.
About Howard Zinn
"I start from the supposition that the world is topsy turvy. That
things are all wrong. That the wrong people are in jail, and the wrong
people are out of jail. That the wrong people are in power, and the
wrong people are out of power. I start with the supposition that we
don't have to say too much about this because all we have to do is
think about the state of the world today and realize that things are
all upside down." The Zinn Reader, 1997
Zinn has been many things. A shipyard worker. A playwright. A rabble
rouser. A historian. But according to Alice Walker, it's as a teacher
that Zinn has had the greatest impact. Zinn's academic tenure hasn't
been easy. Fired from his first university appointment in the South, he
often clashed with his long time employers at Boston University.
His radical alternative to the official textbooks,
A People's History
of the United States, tells our nation's story through the voices of
factory workers, immigrants, women, African Americans, and the poor. In the '60s, he began inspiring a generation to seek peace and justice, and 40
years later, Zinn is still a catalyst for change.
LEARN MORE:
You can read essays, interviews, and commentary at Howard Zinn's website.
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