Seven Events in “A People’s History” That Will Knock You On Your Ass

A People’s History of the United States weaves thousands of threads, uniting hundreds of events, to create a tale of American life that focuses on the oppressed, poor, enslaved and overworked, instead of the common story of presidents, generals and robber barons. Many of these threads have been torn out by generations of grade school history textbooks, and will only be revealed to you once you seek them out yourself. Some form underappreciated turning points, where history could have branched off in many directions and we could have become a drastically freer or more just society. If we remember their lessons, perhaps we still will. Here are seven that stuck with me.

Sources: A People’s History of the United States by Howard Zinn; The “S” Word by John Nichols

1. Bacon’s Rebellion in Virginia, 1676

Poor whites, enslaved blacks, and indentured servants all joined together in an uprising against the wealthy elites of Virginia colony under English rule.  The capital, Jamestown, was nearly burned to the ground.  It started with resentment about white settlers being pushed further out into the frontier, and left to fend against the Native Americans they antagonized, while high taxes enriched the government in Jamestown and the good land on the coasts went to the few and privileged.  It grew into an alliance of black and white, poor and poorer that threatened to bring down the government and usher in a new social order, before it splintered and failed.

2. Denmark Vesey’s Plot in Charleston, South Carolina, 1822

This conspiracy was an awesome effort to organize a widespread revolt of enslaved people in the state, one that eventually counted thousands of people among its supporters – more than the far more famous rebellion of Nat Turner in 1831.  Denmark Vesey’s conspiracy had a traitor in its midst, however, that gave away the plan before it could be executed.  Many dozens were hanged afterward, Vesey among them. Just one example of how rebellion among enslaved people was way more common than commonly believed.

3. The Great Railroad Strike of 1877

An absolutely massive revolt started among railroad workers in a dozen cities, protesting low wages and a callous disregard for the safety of the men who did the work. After being attacked by troops and militia, the strikes expanded to include many other working poor across the nation.  Governors across the country called for more troops as strikers and protesters in Pittsburgh, Chicago, St. Louis and more threatened to take over the cities.  Some troops mutinied and joined with the protestors.  General strikes began before they were put down by troops and militia.  This event was possibly the closest the United States ever got to having a workers’ revolution.

4. Lattimer Massacre – Pennsylvania, 1897

A strike among miners in the state that counted many Eastern and Central European immigrants among its numbers.  Many had been brought in by the mining companies to break the strike, but instead they unionized themselves, began to protest their conditions in turn.  When the immigrant laborers marched, nearby police called to quell the disturbance for the mining company shot them, unprovoked, killing nineteen. 

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