From 1909 to 1910, the public performance of soap-box oratory began to effect dramatic changes in the composition of migrant workers throughout the Pacific Northwest. Municipal authorities in Spokane attempted to curb the formation of a union of hobo orators by outlawing public speech-making within the city fire limits. The ensuing confrontation…

Criticisms of Howard Zinn's work on U.S. History are examined in the context of increasing emphasis on the idea of "American exceptionalism" in contemporary political and cultural discourse, and particularly the insertion of American exceptionalism into revised social studies standards for the state of Texas. Analysis focusing on the…

This paper presents a discussion of Howard Zinn's intellectual and political ideas. Through the analysis of selections from his immense body of work, several interrelated themes emerge. Drawing more attention to these notions of dissent and democracy is crucial to revitalizing education at all levels and vital to advancing the public discourse…

In recent decades many people came to know Howard Zinn for his outspoken advocacy on a wide range of progressive causes, including civil rights, free speech, workers' rights, education reform, and opposition to U.S. imperialism. The author's own first encounter with Howard Zinn's special combination of scholarship and activism occurred several…

Contends that the results of a survey of historians indicate a profession divided within itself. Maintains that cultural diversity was considered one of the "best" and "worst" attributes of contemporary U.S. society. Discusses the concept of progress and its current historical interpretations. (CFR)

In searching for the reasons why Americans differ from their European forebears, as they have from the first settlements, the author discusses the theories of Bancroft, Turner, and Wertenbaker. To the four causes posited by the latter, the author adds: accident, migration, choice, and repetition. (SJL)

Teachers can approach U.S. history since 1945 in two time periods. The first is "Postwar America" (1945-1973), the playing out of the economic, cultural, social, cultural/intellectual, and foreign policy thrusts and attitudes that grew out of the Great Depression and World War II. The second era, "Recent America"…

Every year, historians in the United States attend the American Historical Association (AHA), a conference that has met annually since 1884. The AHA draws scholars from all specializations, and it is the primary organization through which the profession is represented. In 1969, the conference met at the Sheraton Park Hotel in Washington, D.C. At…

Discusses U.S. studies at Russian universities. Includes the status of the field, difficulties in obtaining sources, communist interpretation of U.S. social problems resulting in methodological isolationism, and low quality of scholarship. Warns against a shift in attitude that idealizes the Western experience. Argues that changes in mentality…

Maintains that, as a historian, social critic, and moralist, Christopher Lasch was a powerful presence in U.S. intellectual life. Presents an interview with Lasch prior to his death in February 1994. Reports that Lasch believed that optimism is a kind of investment in the future whereas hope is the rejection of envy and resentment. (CFR)

An American historian writing about the experiences of American homefront children during the Second World War sought to add authenticity to his book by including in it the personal stories of people who had been children during the war, told in their own words. The writer's letter of appeal, published in about 100 U.S. newspapers and about 75…

Surveys current literature dealing with the 1970s feminist movement, concentrating on national public policy. Remarks that little of the research is archival because the Nixon and Carter presidential papers were just recently opened. Offers predictions for the second wave of reconstruction and interpretation that will follow the opening of the…

This paper discusses the impact of World War II on the lives of U.S. home-front children--that is, the boys and girls born between 1933 and 1945 who were children during the war and were still preadolescents when the war ended. The paper proceeds by discussing, first, the topical approach to the subject used in this essay; second, the ways in…

Explains that in order to write a book on the Progressive Era that can compete with the plethora of books already on this topic, the author combined two common strategies used when approaching his book: (1) examining the politics of the period; and (2) analyzing the people and their experiences with social change. (CMK)

Reviews the "Encyclopedia of American Social History," a three-volume work that surveys historical scholarship in social history and lifestyles. Outlines the work's three historical categories: (1) lives of ordinary people; (2) experiences of everyday life; and (3) divisions and connections among social groups. (CFR)