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Search Results for: Howard Zinn

Should American historians seek to emulate Howard Zinn’s approach to popular history?

John Fea   |  July 18, 2023

As some of you know, I am working on a three-volume project, geared to a general reading audience, on evangelicals and politics in the twentieth-first century. Sometimes I don’t know if I am doing journalism or writing history, but I […]

Does Howard Zinn’s “A People’s History of the United States” make students hate America?

John Fea   |  September 25, 2021

As longtime readers of this blog know, I have my issues with Howard Zinn‘s A People’s History of the United States. I stand by what I have written about this book over the last decade or so. We’ve covered him […]

Jim Grossman reflects on his leadership of the American Historical Association

John Fea   |  January 10, 2025

After fifteen years at the helm of the most important historical association in the world, Jim Grossman is stepping aside. Here is Ryan Quinn at Inside Higher Ed: A chapter of history is closing: Jim Grossman is retiring after 15 […]

Jeremy Allen White will play Springsteen in a film about Nebraska

John Fea   |  April 1, 2024

Here is The Guardian: Jeremy Allen White looks set to swap his white t-shirt for a vest later this year, when he takes on the role of Bruce Springsteen for a new biopic, once shooting is completed on the fourth […]

Episode 120: “Popular Historians in Post-War America”

John Fea   |  October 16, 2023

Should professional historians write for the general public? If so, who is the “public” they are trying to reach? And when historians do write for the public how do they manage to make their work readable and accessible without sacrificing […]

Chris Rufo: “Intellectual historian” or “intellectual bully”?

John Fea   |  August 8, 2023

Chris Rufo is a conservative activist whose claim to fame is an appearance on the old Tucker Carlson show on Fox News. That appearance caught the attention of then president Donald Trump. Since then, Rufo has become Ron DeSantis’s point […]

What is popular this week at Current?

John Fea   |  July 21, 2023

Here are the most popular features of the week at Current: Here are the most popular posts of the last week at The Way of Improvement Leads Home blog: Here are the most popular posts of the last week at The Arena blog:

How to teach the history wars

John Fea   |  April 18, 2023

I think it’s fair to say we are in the midst of another round of history wars. Today’s so-called “activist historians” invoke a usable past to preach political and social agendas, while more traditional historians (of all political persuasions–from Trotskyite […]

Staughton Lynd, 1929-2022

John Fea   |  November 18, 2022

We brought Staughton Lynd’s death to your attention yesterday. We now have an obituary. Here is the New York Times: Staughton Lynd, a historian and lawyer who over a long and varied career organized schools for Black children in Mississippi, […]

In a sermon on “defending truth,” Tim Barton makes multiple false claims

John Fea   |  September 30, 2022

The son of Wallbuilders founder David Barton recently gave a rambling “history” sermon at Christian Missions Church in Jacksboro, Texas. This is what can happen when the past is only useful as a form of activism. Here is Barton: Let’s […]

Larry Schweikart: activist historian

John Fea   |  September 17, 2022

Back in 2002 I met Larry Schweikart. He was a professor of history at the University of Dayton. I was interviewing for a job in the history department at the University of Dayton. He may have even been on the […]

What I love about James Sweet’s piece on presentism

John Fea   |  August 22, 2022

I wanted to get these tweets on record here at the blog. Also, some readers of the blog are not Twitter. I’m not going to go into background, but I encourage you to get up to speed here. Again, I […]

Sunday night odds and ends

John Fea   |  April 3, 2022

The cult of Stalin intellectuals Teaching with history with Howard Zinn’s People’s History Integrating college hoops What did Jefferson mean by the pursuit of happiness? Thomas Meaney reviews Jean-Yves Frétigné, To Live Is To Resist: The Life of Antonio Gramsci […]

David Barton spreads blatant falsehoods about the AP US History course, state history standards, and a bunch of other stuff.

John Fea   |  October 17, 2021

David Barton, the Christian Right operative who talks about the past, recently spoke at Godspeak Calvary Chapel in Newbury Park, California. GOP representative Madison Cawthorn introduced Barton. The pastor of the church is Rob McCoy. Learn more about McCoy and […]

What is popular this week at CURRENT?

John Fea   |  October 1, 2021

Current

Here are the most popular Current  features of the last week: Daniel K. Williams, “How the Party of the College Educated Became the Party Opposed to College” Courtney J.P. Friesen, “A Creed for the Credulous” Daniel N. Gullotta, “The Passion of […]

James Loewen, RIP

John Fea   |  August 21, 2021

I never met James Loewen, but I have used his book Teaching What Really Happened once or twice in my “Teaching History” course at Messiah University. I remember about twenty years ago I gave a talk at a conference (I […]