Today in Labor History August 24, 1922: Howard Zinn, American historian, author, teacher and activist was born on this day. Zinn has written over 20 books, including his most well-known book, “A People's History of the United States” (1980). He has described himself as an anarchist and as a democratic socialist. He was initially opposed to U.S. involvement in WWII, but later enlisted to help fight fascism. However, after napalm-bombing a town in France, he later learned that over 1,000 civilians had been killed. This experience reinforced the anti-war stance he would maintain for the rest of his life. In the 1960s, he was heavily involved in the SNCC and Freedom Summer. Zinn has mentored many famous activists and writers, including Alice Walker and Marian Wright Edelman. In 2008, the Zinn Education Project launched to support teachers using “A People’s History” in their curriculum. He died in 2010 from an apparent heart attack.
Be sure to come to the annual Howard Zinn Book fair this December 7, 2025, (10am-6pm) at San Francisco City College, Mission Campus. There will be lots of great writers and workshops. This year’s theme is “Fight Supremacy: Actions Against Authoritarianism.” I will be hosting a working-class writers panel with San Francisco Poet Laureate and activist Tongo Eisen-Martin, poet Daphne Gottlieb, educator and author Jenny Worley, and possibly more tbd.
https://www.zinnbookfair.org/2025
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