photo courtesy of heyhijabi.com

Howard Zinn, famed historian and activist died Wednesday of a heart attack. Days before he died, he offered criticism on President Obama in The Nation.

The short four paragraphs mostly said that he did not expect much from Obama in the first place looking at the trend of Democratic Presidents in the past.

However, Zinn, having committed himself to civil rights since the 50s, was most disappointed in Obama’s lack of fervor to defend constitutional rights. Referring to detainees at Guantanamo, he said he is disappointed the President continues the policy of treating them as suspected terrorists without a trial and “sending suspects to countries where they very well may be tortured.”

Finally, he ended with this:

“I think people are dazzled by Obama’s rhetoric, and that people ought to begin to understand that Obama is going to be a mediocre president–which means, in our time, a dangerous president–unless there is some national movement to push him in a better direction.”

These are harsh words for the President who was elected on a campaign of hope and change. After a year into Obama’s Presidency, what do you think of Zinn’s last words?

January 29, 2010 by Stefani
Tags: Barack Obama, because we found it, Howard Zinn, The Nation
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