Book Thoughts: The Twentieth Century: A People's History

I had read Zinn's “A People's History of the United States,” awhile ago, and did not know that he had written an update to the Twentieth Century until my dad have me the book about a month or so ago. I enjoyed Zinn's previous book because it is so rare to read a history book from the perspective of the non-history makers. It truly is a people's history. You read about those at the bottom barrel of society, not the politicians and prominent American figures. Its what makes the book so compelling and readable.

The “Twentieth Century” is no exception. It doesn't talk about WWI from the perspective of Wilson or the Generals, it doesn't talk about the policies of the turn of the century from Teddy Roosevelt's perspective; nor the Great Depression from FDR or Vietnam from LBJ and so on. Rather it discusses the worker's movements that started at the time, the beginning of the labor movement; it discusses letters and editorials from blacks and women who were fighting for equality; from poor people trying to overcome economic injustice. The book clearly has a thesis that there is an overarching alliance in the history of this country between government and big business, and that this alliance dictates policy decisions, both foreign and domestic. That the press often ignores those folks at the bottom when detailing major historical events. That the country made decisions in foreign policy in order to achieve more markets for business, and that domestic policy is geared towards ensuring that the majority of people have just enough to avoid an all out revolt. The book also demonstrates that the political party in power tends not to matter, especially when it comes to continuing the military-industrial complex upon which the country's economics rely so heavily.

Its a powerful book, with much to give credence to its thesis. When reading that the top 1% of the country controls 40% of the wealth, and that its grip is strengthening over the last 30 years, not decreasing or even staying firm, really highlights the simple truth of the inequality of our economic system. As with Zinn's other book, I would highly recommend this to anyone interested in learning a different history than what they probably received in their high school classes and textbooks.