When most founding members of the Thomas Paine National Historical Association no longer served on the TPNHA board, others joined the association and took active leadership roles. They reflected the founding philosophy and ideas that prevailed at the turn of the century.
Responding to assaults on civil liberties under the 1873 Comstock Act, freethinkers played central roles in the social reform movement opposing abuses of the rich and powerful in the Gilded Age. They were guided by Thomas Paine and Enlightenment Age ideals of democracy, equality and natural rights.
The Comstock Act and the Founders of the Thomas Paine National Historical Association Read Post »
Starting in 1872 and completed in 1873, the Comstock Act brought the weapon of religion against these groups. It was named for Anthony Comstock, a zealous Christian anti-“vice”fanatic who was put in charge of using the Act against the democratic forces emerging.
By Barbara Crane My interest in Thomas Paine began when I moved to New Rochelle in 2016 after retirement from decades advancing women’s reproductive health, rights and justice around the world. My earlier academic work had focused on international politics and development, with special attention to the role and influence of transnational networks and policy
Thomas Paine’s Political Influence on Me Read Post »
An incorrigible Europhile for much of my youth, I was not terribly interested in Thomas Paine. The fact that Ronald Reagan was an admirer of Paine didn’t help either. But then I realized that to understand William Blake’s revolutionary sentiment, I had to read Rights of Man
My Discovery and Love of Thomas Paine Read Post »
The Beacon, a freethought journal by Gilbert Vale (1788-1866) was a pivotal, influential social and political publication in the mid-19th century, publishing 587 issues from 1836 to 1851. In the mid-19th century, The Beacon helped to forge a movement against the age’s undemocratic forces.
Gilbert Vale and The Beacon Read Post »
Calculations are objective, there is no room to introduce prejudices. Such a methodology to analyze text was developed by the Institute for Thomas Paine Studies: to make use of proven methods of comparing author features, they took these methods and combined them.
Computer Text Analysis of Thomas Paine’s Writings 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.
TPNHA and the Comstock Act Read Post »
When our Association was formed, it was on January 29, 1884, on Paine’s birthdate. The people involved had gathered every year on Paine’s birthdate, to meet at the Liberal Club in New York City.
A History of Paine Birthday Events Read Post »
Paine is the benchmark, the inspiration, the guide, the inspirer of the secular democratic trend in world history. His legacy is all around us: in Black Lives Matter, in separation of church and state, in the sanctity of government for, of and by the people, in civil and human rights.
Speech at the Juneteenth Event at the Thomas Paine Memorial Building June 19, 2021 Read Post »
