Howard Zinn’s The People Speak

THE PEOPLE SPEAK is a beautiful and moving film inspired by Howard Zinn’s books A People s History of the United States first published in 1980 and one of the bestselling history books in the United States. The film features the actual words (in letters, songs, poems, speeches, and manifestoes) of rebels, dissenters, and visionaries from our past and present including Frederick Douglass, Susan B. Anthony, Bob Dylan, Langston Hughes, Chief Joseph, Muhammad Ali, and unknown veterans, union workers, abolitionists, and many others never featured in high school textbooks. These dramatic moments from our history are brought to life by a group of remarkable musicians and actors.

Like Howard Zinn’s work as a whole, THE PEOPLE SPEAK celebrates the extraordinary possibilities for creating social change that ordinary people have realized throughout the course of our nation s rich but often ignored history of dissent and protest.

THE PEOPLE SPEAK features dramatic and musical performances by Allison Moorer, Benjamin Bratt, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Chris Robinson, Christina Kirk, Danny Glover, Darryl DMC McDaniels, David Strathairn, Don Cheadle, Eddie Vedder, Harris Yulin, Jasmine Guy, John Legend, Josh Brolin, Kathleen Chalfant, Kerry Washington, Lupe Fiasco, Marisa Tomei, Martín Espada, Matt Damon, Michael Ealy, Mike O’Malley, Morgan Freeman, P!nk, Q’orianka Kilcher, Reg E. Cathey, Rich Robinson, Rosario Dawson, Sandra Oh, Sean Penn, Staceyann Chin, Van Dyke Parks, and Viggo Mortensen. Narrated by Howard Zinn.

Project: Feature Film

Client: History Channel / A&E Home Video

Length: 150 minutes

CREDITS:
Directed By – Howard Zinn, Chris Moore, Anthony Arnove
Written By – Howard Zinn, Anthony Armove
Produced By – Chris Moore, Dan Abrams, J.J. Abrams, Artur Spigel, Anthony Arnove, Jon Berry, Josh Brolin, Matt Damon, Dan Fireman, Ara Katz, Alan Pao, Howard Zinn

For History:
Nancy Dubuc – Producer
Kathleen McGrath – executive producer
David McKillop – co-producer