On August 6, Engaging Peace will celebrate its one-year anniversary. In recognition of our first year, we honor Howard Zinn (1922-2010), one of the dedicatees of the blog. He is a lasting monument to moral engagement.
Because of his commitment to the U.S. Bill of Rights, the U.S. Constitution, and the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Zinn was—and still is–labeled a Communist by individuals who are more concerned with their personal aspirations for power and riches than with universal human rights.
He was considered a danger because of his support for radical movements such as the civil rights movement and labor movements. Despite being a decorated bombardier from World War II, he was considered a threat because he became an anti-war activist.
Zinn argued strongly that there was no moral basis for U.S. involvement in Vietnam or Iraq. He and his friend Noam Chomsky dared to edit the Pentagon Papers for Daniel Ellsberg and helped get them published.
For such activities, beginning in the McCarthy era, Zinn was subjected to FBI surveillance throughout his adult life; in 2010, the FBI released a 423 page report on his activities. Among the dastardly deeds concerning the FBI were Zinn’s criticisms of the agency for failing to protect blacks during civil rights demonstrations.
Even knowing that the FBI kept a file on him, Zinn openly advocated civil disobedience as a legitimate tactic against governments that attacked human rights and pursued immoral agendas.
As an exemplar of moral engagement, Zinn illustrates well the kind of moral leader described by Robert F. Kennedy in a speech in Capetown, South Africa, on June 6th, 1966:
“Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.”
Through his books, plays, and films, and through the thousands of people he has inspired, Zinn has bequeathed a lasting legacy promoting fairness and justice over special interests, empathy over hate, and life over death.
Kathie Malley-Morrison, Professor of Psychology