Howard Zinn and the Little Guy

I have a new person to add to my list of heroes. He's the late historian Howard Zinn. I just started reading his masterpiece , "A People's History of the United States 1492 to the Present." (Shame on me for taking so long to get to it). I am finding out what so many people before me discovered: it is wonderful. What I like best about the perspective Zinn takes is that he looks at the history of our nation from the perspective of the average person and not the leaders or persons who necessarily grabbed all the headlines then as well as now. Of course, this is not to say that people like Christopher Columbus, George Washington and, more recently, Ronald Reagen are not mentioned. They and many of the other familiar historical icons certainly are. But instead of simply presenting the times in which these individuals led, challenges they faced and impact of their decisions and visions, Zinn looks closely at the equally important and difficult challenges that many of the so-called "little people" faced during the times in which Abraham Lincoln, Henry Ford and Franklin Roosevelt reigned and often dominated the attention and interest of the nation and even the world.

How did the average soldier during America's Revolutionary War cope when the revolutionary leaders were not able to pay them? Fast forward over 200 years, what concerns were many U.S. citizens having and feeling at the time the United States was organizing an international coalition designed to drive the army of Iraq out of Iran? We know what the headlines of the time said in response to these questions, but Zinn goes beyond them and, in doing so, provides invaluable insight into the fabric of our nation in ways that few historians have done before or since. Zinn's book raises important questions for professional communicators: Who speaks for the person with no voice? What role can or should professional communicators play in helping provide those with little or no power or influence with the opportunity to speak out, be heard and perhaps make a difference?

While I have no precise answer to those questions, I do know our society has little chance of maintaining any degree of health and vitality if its key publics are not talking with each other. If the rich and powerful continue talking at those who are neither of those things, then discontent will continue filling the air from which our nation draws life. While it is possible the so-called Tea Party movement reflects efforts on the part of the non-rich and powerful to be heard, I have my doubts. Time will tell. But either way, that dialog must be allowed to continue. While working with clients, pubic relations professionals need do all they can to encourage ways for their clients to connect with those they employ and/or represent. Their public relations strategies must include meaningful interaction or mutual engagement between managers and employees, for instance. It all begins with trying to bring people together.