In 1965, a noted historian, Forest MacDonald, wrote a textbook on the creation of the Republic, E Pluribus Unum. He is known for his rationalizing of slavery, ultra-conservatism, and apologist for all things Southern. But he got one thing right.
Immigration to America was a major impetus for the American Revolution, both physically and intellectually. Thomas Paine welcomed immigrants who were escaping tyranny. In 1776, he wrote in Common Sense, the manifesto of the American Revolution:
Thomas Paine on Immigrants and America as an “Asylum for Mankind” Read Post »
Our Association was founded in 1884, and the founders were from various organizations, all of which were opposed to the Comstock Act. The Comstock Act was created to combat “obscenity”, dodging the idea that the Comstock Act was in itself obscene to democracy.
While I beheld with pleasure the dawn of liberty rising in Europe, I saw with regret the lustre of it fading in America. In less than two years from the time of my departure some distant symptoms painfully suggested the idea that the principles of the Revolution were expiring.
Thomas Paine’s Common Sense begins with a discussion on government; in fact, the content of it in general is about a new form of government. It is a manifesto for a new era, arising from the political economy that is emerging, hampered by feudalism.
O’Connor, although he inherited an estate and was a member of the Irish Parliament, was an advocate for women’s rights, supported emancipation of Catholics although a Protestant, and independence from England. When he joined the United Irishmen fighting the British occupation of Ireland, he was arrested.
The only reference to Thomas Paine made by Bob Dylan is the 1967 “As I Went Out One Morning”, on the John Wesley Harding album. I started reading Paine after I heard that song. However, every analysis I read about the song only confused me.
The 19th century history books were steeped in prejudice against Paine, driven by political and theistical bias, largely rooted in fake news, incomplete facts, and the myth of the founding. That myth of the founding puts the Federalist Party as the Founding Party.
The Truth Seeker is the oldest, and most influential, continuous, freethought publication in the world. The Thomas Paine National Historical Association was formed as a result of the Truth Seeker magazine: nine of the sixteen founders of TPNHA were involved in the magazine.
2023 Marks the 150th Anniversary of The Truth Seeker Read Post »
There is a preponderance of faulty historiography about Paine, and this is why our Association was founded to correct it. Bernard Bailyn produced a book in the late 1760s, The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution, which represents the conservative view of history.
Diego Rivera was a famous Mexican artist in the first half of the 20th century. His most controversial project was the mural he created for the Rockefeller Center in New York City.
Diego Rivera’s Mural Panel of the American Revolution Read Post »
Every proposed Washington, D.C. monument and museum must be presented to the National Capital Memorial Advisory Commission (NCMAC) for consideration. TPMA spokespersons conducted a presentation to NCMAC on July 27, 2022.
