Howard Zinn

Howard Zinn is one of the many who believed that the emergence of modern capitalism was what produced the results in Early America. We should ask ourselves: What is capitalism? How did capitalism bring about the results in early America? Who brought capitalism into early America?

Capitalism is a problematic term and can be a very difficult thing to comprehend. Capitalism is usually defined as “An economic concept of civilization that is based on the private ownership (and control) of the means of production.” As a way of thinking capitalism is very individualistic. The idea is that all individuals are different, that each person has their own goals of interest at mind and that these individuals have the right to be free in following through with these goals. Many people argue that capitalism is the only system that really works.

The settlers’ hunger for more and more land was what led to the exploring of the New World. "Capitalism came in the first ships”. This system didn’t just come about out of nowhere; it was imposed on the people. If something was standing in the way of capitalism and it’s production then it was simply swept away. One example being why the Indians were slaughtered enslaved and dispossessed. According to Zinn John Winthrop the governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony had created the excuse to take Indian land was by declaring the area legally a “vacuum.” He believed that the land was not “subdued” and that Indians only had a natural right to the land, and not a “civil right”.

Columbus landed in the islands now known as the Bahamas. This is where Columbus met the Arawak Indians. He wrote about their kindheartedness and generosity in his journals. Columbus unfortunately took a group of Arawaks hostage, hoping they could guide him to gold. He then traveled to Hispaniola-Haiti and the Dominican Republic where he imprisoned even more Indians. Christopher Columbus is a huge hero to the capitalists.