A People's History of the United States

Historian Howard Zinn's A People’s History of the United States tells American history from the bottom up, shifting focus from presidents and generals to the street, the home, and the workplace. Zinn uses the words and experiences of women, factory workers, African Americans, Native Americans, the working poor, and immigrant laborers to retell national events. Covering Christopher Columbus's arrival through President Clinton's first term, the book traces grassroots campaigns and conflicts: fights for a fair wage, an eight-hour workday, child labor laws, health and safety standards, universal suffrage, women's rights, and racial equality, often met with bloody resistance.