Jan
20
2010
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the entire program
Hiram Revels Becomes First African-American Senator
Back in the day on January 20th, 1870, Hiram Rhodes Revels became the first African-American to be elected to the United States Senate. Born in North Carolina, the Christian minister and educator was, ironically, chosen to fill the long vacated seat of former Mississippi Senator and one-time President of the Confederacy Jefferson …
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Jan
19
2010
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Jan Palach’s Self-Immolation
Back in the day on January 19th, 1969, Jan Palach, a student of history, died three days after having set himself on fire in protest of the Soviet occupation of Czechoslovakia. The twenty-year old young man had been an avid supporter of the “Prague Spring” of 1968 and its efforts to create ‘socialism with a …
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Jan
15
2010
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the entire program
The Death of Leonel Rugama
Back in the day on January 15th, 1970, Nicaraguan guerrilla poet Leonel Rugama was killed in battle. Born of a father who worked as a carpenter and a mother who was a teacher, the young Central American wordsmith enrolled in the National Seminary in Managua where he struck a friendship with famed poet …
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Jan
14
2010
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The Human Be-In
Back in the day on January 14th, 1967, “A Gathering of the Tribes for a Human Be-In” took place in Northern California. The counter-culture gathering first announced on the cover of the San Francisco Oracle attracted tens of thousands to the city’s Golden Gate Park. The event had evolved from an earlier gathering called the …
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Jan
12
2010
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British Zulu War
Back in the day on January 12th, 1879, the British-Zulu War began in Southern Africa. British Lieutenant General Lord Chelmsford commanded three columns in an invasion of the Zulu Nation. Prior to the start of the war, Sir Henry Bartle Frere as British High Commissioner sought to defeat Zululand as part of his plans to …
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Jan
11
2010
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the entire program
The Murder of Carlo Tresca
Back in the day on January 11th, 1943, Italian-born American anarchist Carlo Tresca was murdered in New York. The newspaper editor and labor organizer had spent much of his adult life editing newspapers with his outspoken political perspectives while being active in the labor movement. Having left Italy to avoid persecution for his …
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Jan
08
2010
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the entire program
Louisiana Slave Uprising
Back in the day on January 8th, 1811, the largest slave revolt in U.S. history occurred in Louisiana as Charles Deslondes led an insurgent band of hundreds towards the city of New Orleans. Starting in Saint Charles and Saint James Parish in Louisiana, the rebelling slaves marched from plantation to plantation along the eastern bank …
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Jan
07
2010
Argentina’s Tragic Week
Back in the day on January 7th, 1919, four workers were killed in Buenos Aires, Argentina starting ‘la semana tragica’ or the tragic week. Military officers used deadly force against striking workers echoing the worldwide demand for an eight hour day and improved wages in the Vesena Iron Workers plant in the capital city. The unleashing …
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Jan
05
2010
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The Indictment of Dr. Benjamin Spock
Back in the day on January 5th, 1968, Dr. Benjamin Spock alongside four others was indicted for conspiring to violate the Selective Services Act of 1948. The influential pediatrician and author of the best-selling book “Baby and Child Care” was incredulously charged with aiding and abetting draft resisters. As a pacifist opposed …
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Dec
23
2009
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the entire program
Somoza’s Earthquake
Back in the day on December 23rd, 1972, a magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck the Nicaraguan capital of Managua. The Central American city violently shook forcing the displacement of two-thirds of its residents and the deaths of between 3,000 and 7,000 people. Having taken place under the U.S. supported dictatorship of Anastasio Somoza, the 1972 Managua earthquake …
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