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[[Howard Zinn]] (August 24, 1922 – January 27, 2010) was a [[Communist]]<ref>[http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/vernon/100809 Howard Zinn: Communist liar]</ref> who is most famous for his book, ''[[A People's History of the United States]]''.  The book, due largely to a hat tip from Matt Damon's character Will Hunting in the film ''[[Good Will Hunting]]'', has sold over a million copies and gives a far-left interpretation of political history (see [[historical revisionism]]). Zinn's work manifests an inability or unwillingness to engage in objective analysis, and lacks contextual considerations, and instead his presentation of history is a polemic for liberal change. Zinn was very popular with liberal elites, and his book was made into a propagandistic film, "The People Speak", which the History Channel carried on cable television.

[[Howard Zinn]] (August 24, 1922 – January 27, 2010) was a [[Communist]]<ref>[http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/vernon/100809 Howard Zinn: Communist liar]</ref> who is most famous for his book ''[[A People's History of the United States]]''.  The book, due largely to a hat tip from Matt Damon's character Will Hunting in the film ''[[Good Will Hunting]]'', has sold over a million copies and gives a far-left interpretation of political history (see [[historical revisionism]]). Zinn's work manifests an inability or unwillingness to engage in objective analysis, and lacks contextual considerations, and instead his presentation of history is a polemic for liberal change. Zinn was very popular with liberal elites, and his book was made into a propagandistic film, ''The People Speak'', which the [[History Channel]] carried on cable television.

Historian and author John Fea of Messiah College states that,

Historian and author John Fea of Messiah College states that,

''A People's History of the United States'' does not incorporate the newer theories of history, but provides an energetic heavy-handed attack on conservatives, business, and white men.  His book is stuck in 1950, methodologically, and does not appreciate the scholarship of the last 4 decades in the "new" intellectual, political, economic, diplomatic, military, cultural or social history. His "newest" ideas are that the white male "working class" -- as well as blacks, Indians, and women -- are victims of capitalism, a stock notion of 1930s [[Socialism|socialist]] philosophy regarding workers.  

''A People's History of the United States'' does not incorporate the newer theories of history, but provides an energetic heavy-handed attack on conservatives, business, and white men.  His book is stuck in 1950, methodologically, and does not appreciate the scholarship of the last 4 decades in the "new" intellectual, political, economic, diplomatic, military, cultural or social history. His "newest" ideas are that the white male "working class" -- as well as blacks, Indians, and women -- are victims of capitalism, a stock notion of 1930s [[Socialism|socialist]] philosophy regarding workers.  

Zinn's motivation for his radical point-of-view presentation of history appears to have formally begun with an event at an early age. When he the age of 17 he attended a Times Square political rally where was knocked senseless by police. As a result,, Zinn stated that, "I was no longer a liberal, a believer in the self-correcting character of democracy. I was a radical, believing something was fundamentally wrong with this country."

Zinn's motivation for his radical point-of-view presentation of history appears to have formally begun with an event at an early age. When he the age of 17 he attended a Times Square political rally where was knocked senseless by police. As a result,, Zinn stated that, "I was no longer a liberal, a believer in the self-correcting character of democracy. I was a radical, believing something was fundamentally wrong with this country."{{fact}}

It has been pointed out that, consistent with the no-contextual analysis Zinn often engages in, he himself could be considered to be a villainous, arbitrary murderer of women and children, as he served in the United States Air Corps during World War II on a bomber crew.  

It has been pointed out that, consistent with the decontextualized analysis Zinn often engages in, he himself could be considered to be a villainous, arbitrary murderer of women and children, as he served in the United States Air Corps during World War II on a bomber crew.  

==Communist Party activity==

==Communist Party activity==

In response to a [[Freedom of Information Act]] (FOIA) request by Cliff Kincaid,  Editor of [[Accuracy in Media]], on July 30, 2010, the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] (FBI) released a 423 page file on Howard Zinn.The FBI file reveals that while Zinn denied being a member of the CPUSA, several reliable informants in the party identified Zinn as a member who attended party meetings as many as five times a week.  

In response to a [[Freedom of Information Act]] (FOIA) request by Cliff Kincaid,  Editor of [[Accuracy in Media]], on July 30, 2010, the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] (FBI) released a 423 page file on Howard Zinn.The FBI file reveals that while Zinn denied being a member of the CPUSA, several reliable informants in the party identified Zinn as a member who attended party meetings as many as five times a week.  

The FBI first opened a domestic security investigation on Zinn  in 1949, which revealed Zinn’s activities in what were called [[Communist]] Front Groups, and received reports from informants that Zinn was an active member of the CPUSA, with one stating that he was "believed to be a CP member as of October, 1956."  In the 1960s, the Bureau took another look at Zinn on account of his criticism of the FBI’s civil rights investigations.  A 1964 FBI memorandum refers to Zinn as "a professor and writer who has a background of known membership in the Communist Party (CP) and has continued to demonstrate procommunist and anti-United States sympathies." It also reveals that while Zinn had denied membership in the CPUSA, his denial "was not supported by facts" - a reference to the substantial evidence and eyewitness testimony provided by informants in the CPUSA. Further investigation was made when Zinn traveled to North Vietnam with Daniel Berrigan as an anti-war activist. The investigation ended in 1974, and no further investigation into Zinn or his activities was made by the FBI.<ref>[http://foia.fbi.gov/foiaindex/zinn_howard.htm Federal Bureau of Investigation, Howard Zinn]</ref><ref>[http://www.rightsidenews.com/2010073011179/editorial/leftist-qhistorianq-howard-zinn-lied-about-red-ties/print.html  Cliff Kincaid, ''Leftist "Historian" Howard Zinn Lied About Red Ties''] Friday, 30 July 2010  </ref>

The FBI first opened a domestic security investigation on Zinn  in 1949, which revealed Zinn’s activities in what were called [[Communist]] Front Groups, and received reports from informants that Zinn was an active member of the CPUSA, with one stating that he was "believed to be a CP member as of October, 1956."  In the 1960s, the Bureau took another look at Zinn on account of his criticism of the FBI’s civil rights investigations.  A 1964 FBI memorandum refers to Zinn as "a professor and writer who has a background of known membership in the Communist Party (CP) and has continued to demonstrate procommunist and anti-United States sympathies." It also reveals that while Zinn had denied membership in the CPUSA, his denial "was not supported by facts" - a reference to the substantial evidence and eyewitness testimony provided by informants in the CPUSA. Further investigation was made when Zinn traveled to North Vietnam with Daniel Berrigan as an anti-war activist. The investigation ended in 1974, and no further investigation into Zinn or his activities was made by the FBI.<ref>[http://foia.fbi.gov/foiaindex/zinn_howard.htm Federal Bureau of Investigation, Howard Zinn]</ref><ref>[http://www.rightsidenews.com/2010073011179/editorial/leftist-qhistorianq-howard-zinn-lied-about-red-ties/print.html  Cliff Kincaid, ''Leftist "Historian" Howard Zinn Lied About Red Ties''] Friday, 30 July 2010  </ref>