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4.26 AVERAGE
4.26 AVERAGE
I've been trying to read this book for years. It sounds like everything I should enjoy reading and analyzing and criticizing. The topics presented are are often lesser known events in American history or are retellings from the oppressed' point of view. Yet, after years, I still can't get past the Jacksonian presidency chapter. The only thing I can think of is the writing style. It's giant passages of primary source quotes with some of Zinn's thoughts - not really ideal for when you're trying to casually read on the morning train.
challenging
informative
slow-paced
I haven't read this cover to cover but I've read many parts of it. It is a must-read for anyone interested in history, politics, and truth.
The more I fill in the gaps of American history curiously absent from high school textbooks, the less polarized I feel about our nation's origins.
I now find the proper way of looking back on American history is at arm's length - it is not worth 21st century praise nor should it be a detestable origin from which to condemn. It is a complex, layered history that offers valuable lessons and pitfalls in which this nation could thrive or come undone. For lack of a better analysis: It is what it is.
But to those of you who talk about preserving our history so that we can learn from it, what have you learned?
This book is, first and foremost, a book for and about the people (hence the title). This is not the government's or politician's view of the United States, which has been well masked until recent decades. So if you are opposed to any kind of uprising or protest happening right now, this is not the book for you. That is also ironic, because this country is firmly defined by those who challenge power.
A hefty tome that covers 350 years of history, this is a slow read. With its density, I will distill my numerous takeaways into three core concepts:
Which Timeline is Worth Fighting For?
As obvious as this is, many citizens have not realized this yet: The world in which we currently live is nothing like the country that was founded. Some foundational sentiments - such as life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness - should remain. But most others should change with the time. And, at the VERY least, they should not be fought for.
Examples:
- Intolerance of any kind.
- Anything that directly affects another human being when it has nothing to do with you.
- Anything that accounts for previously inconceivable technology.
We have access to exponentially more information than our founding fathers and we have a longer life span to implement our knowledge. FUN FACT: Doctors only started washing their hands before surgery in the mid-1800s. That generation was not all-knowing. Our ancestors had great minds, but we have had hundreds of years to further their intentions.
Despite all of our advantages, much of this current generation is more willing to uphold the standards of our archaic ancestors than create anything substantial of their own.
I Will Not Completely Condemn Our Forefathers
As Run the Jewels succinctly puts it: "Look at all these slave masters posin' on yo' dollar." During the founding of this country, slaves = power. Therefore, if one was to have a seat at the table, one would need power, which means they would need slaves. Sick as it was, they lived in accordance to the society they were in.
These men did fight against tremendous odds for the sake of freedom, and I am hoping they sought freedom for ALL earlier than the Emancipation Proclamation. Think of it this way: Would you want this country to have been founded by those who were all vehemently pro-slave? But now I am inserting hope into history, which do not mix.
Still, we need to find a way to reconcile this reality so we can all move forward, preferably onto a cornerstone that eradicates racial injustice.
It's the 1% and Everyone Else
The book ended on a heavy note, but one that is quite clear if you are paying attention to not only to US history but to the actions of our current government: If you are not in the 1%, you are being played. America is set up so the rich thrive in any circumstance - pandemics, crimes, etc.
The best leaders are the ones who will give the people just enough to be satisfied so they won't complain. The 99% are so segmented that when a group or two does complain, their voices are barely whispers.
But when enough of the 99% - the working class that makes this country run - are feeling unfairly treated, that is when you get true movements. These movements (workers strike, civil rights, Women's March, and many others), whether successes or failures, have shaped this country from the onset. We are in the midst of the single largest protest in this country's history, so some kind of change will come.
We'll just have to see what happens after this election.
I now find the proper way of looking back on American history is at arm's length - it is not worth 21st century praise nor should it be a detestable origin from which to condemn. It is a complex, layered history that offers valuable lessons and pitfalls in which this nation could thrive or come undone. For lack of a better analysis: It is what it is.
But to those of you who talk about preserving our history so that we can learn from it, what have you learned?
This book is, first and foremost, a book for and about the people (hence the title). This is not the government's or politician's view of the United States, which has been well masked until recent decades. So if you are opposed to any kind of uprising or protest happening right now, this is not the book for you. That is also ironic, because this country is firmly defined by those who challenge power.
A hefty tome that covers 350 years of history, this is a slow read. With its density, I will distill my numerous takeaways into three core concepts:
Which Timeline is Worth Fighting For?
As obvious as this is, many citizens have not realized this yet: The world in which we currently live is nothing like the country that was founded. Some foundational sentiments - such as life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness - should remain. But most others should change with the time. And, at the VERY least, they should not be fought for.
Examples:
- Intolerance of any kind.
- Anything that directly affects another human being when it has nothing to do with you.
- Anything that accounts for previously inconceivable technology.
We have access to exponentially more information than our founding fathers and we have a longer life span to implement our knowledge. FUN FACT: Doctors only started washing their hands before surgery in the mid-1800s. That generation was not all-knowing. Our ancestors had great minds, but we have had hundreds of years to further their intentions.
Despite all of our advantages, much of this current generation is more willing to uphold the standards of our archaic ancestors than create anything substantial of their own.
I Will Not Completely Condemn Our Forefathers
As Run the Jewels succinctly puts it: "Look at all these slave masters posin' on yo' dollar." During the founding of this country, slaves = power. Therefore, if one was to have a seat at the table, one would need power, which means they would need slaves. Sick as it was, they lived in accordance to the society they were in.
These men did fight against tremendous odds for the sake of freedom, and I am hoping they sought freedom for ALL earlier than the Emancipation Proclamation. Think of it this way: Would you want this country to have been founded by those who were all vehemently pro-slave? But now I am inserting hope into history, which do not mix.
Still, we need to find a way to reconcile this reality so we can all move forward, preferably onto a cornerstone that eradicates racial injustice.
It's the 1% and Everyone Else
The book ended on a heavy note, but one that is quite clear if you are paying attention to not only to US history but to the actions of our current government: If you are not in the 1%, you are being played. America is set up so the rich thrive in any circumstance - pandemics, crimes, etc.
The best leaders are the ones who will give the people just enough to be satisfied so they won't complain. The 99% are so segmented that when a group or two does complain, their voices are barely whispers.
But when enough of the 99% - the working class that makes this country run - are feeling unfairly treated, that is when you get true movements. These movements (workers strike, civil rights, Women's March, and many others), whether successes or failures, have shaped this country from the onset. We are in the midst of the single largest protest in this country's history, so some kind of change will come.
We'll just have to see what happens after this election.
Dont have the capacity for this right now. Do want to come back to it though!
informative
reflective
medium-paced
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Felt rambling and disjointed at the end
Also didn't feel as groundbreaking and radical as it was 20 years ago. Feel like more of this is better known
Also didn't feel as groundbreaking and radical as it was 20 years ago. Feel like more of this is better known
informative