America's conscience died long before Howard Zinn passed away in
2010 ~ but his words and thoughts gnaw away at our collective soul and remind us that
no Empire can long withstand the loss of its moral bearings: Allen L Roland
How
can you have a war on terrorism when war itself is terrorism? ~ Howard Zinn
Howard
Zinn died of a heart attack at the age of 87 on January 27, 2010 but his words
still reverberate within the catacombs of our national conscience reminding us
that we are capable of greater things than
dishonesty and lies, illegal wars and occupations, torture and rendition,
targeted drone assassinations and predatory capitalism.
We
are obviously made of better stuff and Howard Zinn knew that it all started
with the truth ~ “The challenge remains. On the other side are
formidable forces: money, political power, the major media. On our side are the
people of the world and a power greater than money or weapons: the truth.
Truth
has a power of its own. Art has a power of its own. That age-old lesson – that
everything we do matters – is the meaning of the people’s struggle here in the
United States and everywhere. A poem can inspire a movement. A pamphlet can
spark a revolution. Civil disobedience can arouse people and provoke us to
think, when we organize with one another, when we get involved, when we stand
up and speak out together, we can create a power no government can suppress. We
live in a beautiful country. But people who have no respect for human life,
freedom, or justice have taken it over. It is now up to all of us to take it
back.”
―
Howard Zinn, A Power Governments Cannot Suppress
Zinn
sensed America's longing for a true change in moral values before the 2008
election and correctly saw Obama as a champion of the status quo and not an
advocate for true change ~ “I think people are dazzled by Obama's
rhetoric, and that people ought to begin to understand that Obama is going to
be a mediocre president — which means, in our time, a dangerous president —
unless there is some national movement to push him in a better direction … What
matters most is not who is sitting in the White House, but "who is sitting
in" -- and who is marching outside the White House, pushing for change.”
Zinn
took no great pride in being a member of the so-called ' Greatest generation '
~ “The Greatest Generation? They tell me I am a member of the greatest
generation. That's because I saw combat duty as a bombardier in World War 2 .
But I refuse to celebrate "the greatest generation" because in so
doing we are celebrating courage and sacrifice in the cause of war. And we are
miseducating the young to believe that military heroism is the noblest form of
heroism, when it should be remembered only as the tragic accompaniment of
horrendous policies driven by power and profit. The current infatuation with
World War 2 prepares us ~ innocently on the
part of some, deliberately on the part of others ~ for
more war, more military adventures, more attempts to emulate the military
heroes of the past.”
How
do we achieve justice without war was Zinn's constant question and quest ~ as
seen in this three minute YouTube video from You Can't Be Neutral on a
Moving Train
But
Zinn was always an advocate for patriotic dissent even in the face of
globalization and an approaching new world order ~ “Today everybody
is talking about the fact that we live in one world; because of globalization,
we are all part of the same planet. They talk that way, but do they mean it? We
should remind them that the words of the Declaration [of Independence] apply not
only to people in this country, but also to people all over the world. People
everywhere have the same right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
When the government becomes destructive of that, then it is patriotic to
dissent and to criticize - to do what we always praise and call heroic when we
look upon the dissenters and critics in totalitarian countries who dare to
speak out.”
―
Howard Zinn, Artists in Times of War and Other Essays
Zinn
was a strong advocate for the voice of the people and his writings continually
reminded us of that deep connection ~ “The democratic principle,
enunciated in the words of the Declaration of Independence, declared that
government was secondary, that the people who established it were primary.
Thus, the future of democracy depended on the people, and their growing
consciousness of what was the decent way to relate to their fellow human beings
all over the world.”
―
Howard Zinn, A People's History of the United States: 1492 to Present
Zinn
was also a proud practitioner of civil disobedience versus civil obedience and
felt that no great change could occur without it ~ “Civil disobedience is
not our problem. Our problem is civil obedience. Our problem is that people all
over the world have obeyed the dictates of leaders…and millions have been
killed because of this obedience…Our problem is that people are obedient all
over the world in the face of poverty and starvation and stupidity, and war,
and cruelty. Our problem is that people are obedient while the jails are full
of petty thieves… (and) the grand thieves are running the country. That’s our
problem … “Historically, the most terrible things - war, genocide, and slavery
- have resulted not from disobedience, but from obedience.”
Above
all, Howard Zinn was a truth teller and
firmly believed that human beings were neither sheep or machines and that the
hope of mankind resided in their willingness to exercise their conscience, in
the face of perceived injustice, and declare their independence ~ “But
human beings are not machines, and however powerful the pressure to conform,
they sometimes are so moved by what they see as injustice that they dare to
declare their independence. In that historical possibility lies hope.”
―
Howard Zinn, You Can't Be Neutral on a Moving Train: A Personal History of Our
Times
So
the hope for a better America lies in resurrecting our lost conscience or in
the words of Howard Zinn ~ “I wonder how the foreign policies of the
United States would look if we wiped out the national boundaries of the world,
at least in our minds, and thought of all children everywhere as our own… There
is no flag large enough to cover the shame of killing innocent people.”
Amen!
Allen
L Roland
Freelance
Alternative Press Online columnist and psychotherapist Allen L Roland is
available for comments, interviews, speaking engagements and private
consultations allen@allenroland.com
Allen
L Roland is a practicing psychotherapist, author and lecturer who also shares a
daily political and social commentary on his weblog and website
