Finally today I ordered seeds for my winter sun room and early spring growing. Maybe now that the seeds are on their way the weather will warm.
A few days ago the people’s historian, Howard Zinn, died. I first met Howard in 1969 when he was an ‘expert’ witness at our trial of the Milwaukee 14. Our defense for our direct action of destroying 1A selective service records was that our act was a necessary one of conscience and civil disobedience to stop the selective service system from drafting young men to fight in an unjust and immoral war in Vietnam. By this time Howard was well known as a historian of the people, a person of nonviolence and a leader against the war in Vietnam.
His and our argument that direct action was needed for change and to save lives, as expected, did not win the day. We were convicted of burglary, arson and theft. The fourteen of us went to jail and moved on with our lives. Howard went back to Boston University and continued to be a great writer and historian. His most popular book came in 1980, “A People’s History of the United States”.
Over the years I have heard about Howard Zinn and read many of his writings. The one thing that strikes me most about his writings was the call for ‘direct action’. The people’s democracy in his view was a bottom-up one, and real change only came when the people demanded it and were willing to risk “civil disobedience” to attain rights.
Recently a video the People Speak, based on his book, was presented on the History Channel. Well known actors read and sang the words of everyday men and women who changed history by their direct action and words.
Finally tonight I added some videos from a recent interview with Howard Zinn and obituaries about him to my web page about him.
Today I purchased seeds to plant and spread the seeds of the people’s history.
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