Time Period: 1980-1989

Howard Zinn’s Testimony at the United Freedom Front Sedition Trial
Court testimony by Howard Zinn. University of Massachusetts Amherst. Oct. 18, 1989.
Howard Zinn's testimony on
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Howard Zinn's testimony on
Scare Words Leave Scars on Everyone
By Howard Zinn. Article. Newsday. January 22, 1989.
“The use of scare words is profoundly undemocratic. It stifles debate; it creates an atmosphere in which people are afraid to speak their minds, honestly, afraid to examine all ideas.”
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“The use of scare words is profoundly undemocratic. It stifles debate; it creates an atmosphere in which people are afraid to speak their minds, honestly, afraid to examine all ideas.”

Talk at the History and Consequences of Anti-Communism Conference (1988)
Talk by Howard Zinn.Harvard University. 1988.
This clip is from Howard Zinn's opening talk at the 1988 international Conference "The History and Consequences of Anti-Communism" held in November 1988 at Harvard University.
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This clip is from Howard Zinn's opening talk at the 1988 international Conference "The History and Consequences of Anti-Communism" held in November 1988 at Harvard University.

A People’s Constitution: Some Truths Are Not Self-Evident
Commentary by Howard Zinn. The Nation. August 1, 1987.
"The proper question, I believe, is not how good a document is or was the Constitution but, What effect does it have on the quality of our lives? And the answer to that, it seems to me, is, Very little. The Constitution makes promises it cannot by itself keep, and therefore deludes us into complacency about the rights we have."
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"The proper question, I believe, is not how good a document is or was the Constitution but, What effect does it have on the quality of our lives? And the answer to that, it seems to me, is, Very little. The Constitution makes promises it cannot by itself keep, and therefore deludes us into complacency about the rights we have."

Howard Zinn Archives at Alternative Radio
Collection. Alternative Radio. 1960s-2009.
An archive of more than 50 talks and interviews by Howard Zinn at Alternative Radio.
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An archive of more than 50 talks and interviews by Howard Zinn at Alternative Radio.

The Twentieth Century: A People’s History
By Howard Zinn. Book - Nonfiction. Harpercollins. 1984; 1994; 2003.
Chapters from A People’s History of the United States that span history from the 20th century.
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Chapters from A People’s History of the United States that span history from the 20th century.

‘Je Ne Suis Pas Un Marxiste’
By Howard Zinn. Article. ZCommunications, June 1988; Failure to Quit, and excerpted from The Zinn Reader.
Howard Zinn writes: For a long time I thought that there were important and useful ideas in Marxist philosophy and political economy that should be protected from the self-righteous cries on the right that "Marxism is dead,” as well as from the arrogant assumptions of the commissars of various dictatorships that their monstrous regimes represented “Marxism.”
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Howard Zinn writes: For a long time I thought that there were important and useful ideas in Marxist philosophy and political economy that should be protected from the self-righteous cries on the right that "Marxism is dead,” as well as from the arrogant assumptions of the commissars of various dictatorships that their monstrous regimes represented “Marxism.”

Bob Moses: A Life of Civil Rights Activism
Speeches by Bob Moses and Howard Zinn. Martin Luther King Jr.: The Leader and the Legacy Forum. C-SPAN. October 15, 1986.
Bob Moses, civil rights activist and founder of The Algebra Project, died on July 25, 2021. We pay tribute to Moses and share a collection of materials from the Howard Zinn’s papers and books that provide a look at Moses. We also share a video clip and transcript from the Martin Luther King Jr.: The Leader and the Legacy Forum (1986) where Moses and Zinn gave commentary on papers presented.
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Bob Moses, civil rights activist and founder of The Algebra Project, died on July 25, 2021. We pay tribute to Moses and share a collection of materials from the Howard Zinn’s papers and books that provide a look at Moses. We also share a video clip and transcript from the Martin Luther King Jr.: The Leader and the Legacy Forum (1986) where Moses and Zinn gave commentary on papers presented.

Ends and Means: History and Consequences of Anti-Communism
Howard Zinn interviewed by DeeDee Halleck. Institute for Media Analysis. 1988.
Howard Zinn discusses how the word communism (and Marxism) is used to obscure people’s attention, scapegoat people and movements, and how he prefers to get to the essence of where people stand on issues rather than using labels. Zinn heralds radicals as people we need to help achieve a more just world.
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Howard Zinn discusses how the word communism (and Marxism) is used to obscure people’s attention, scapegoat people and movements, and how he prefers to get to the essence of where people stand on issues rather than using labels. Zinn heralds radicals as people we need to help achieve a more just world.