Page 22 – Zinn Education Project

May 22: International Day for Biological Diversity

The United Nations proclaimed May 22 the International Day for Biological Diversity (IDB) to increase understanding and awareness of biodiversity issues.

May 22, 1843: “Great Emigration” of the Oregon Trail

Thousands of Native Americans were displaced when the “Great Emigration” on the Oregon Trail began.

May 21, 1881: Blanche K. Bruce Became Register of the Treasury

Blanche K. Bruce became Register of the Treasury, which placed his name on all U.S. currency.

A sign near the Liberty Bell tells the story of Ona Judge. Independence Historical Park, Philadelphia.

May 21, 1796: Ona Judge Escapes Enslavement by President George Washington

Ona Judge escaped enslavement by U.S. President George Washington.

May 20, 1963: Medgar Evers Speech on WLBT

Medgar Evers made a 17-minute speech on WLBT in a rare and historic exception to the white supremacist only voice on Mississippi radio and television.

May 20, 1943: The Battle of Attu

The Battle of Attu was fought between U.S. and Japanese forces, with Attu villagers taken as prisoners of war.

Peter Yew/Police Brutality Protests, 1975 | Zinn Education Project: Teaching People's History

May 19, 1975: Peter Yew/Police Brutality Protests

Virtually every shop and factory in Chinatown was closed, with signs posted windows and on doors reading “Closed to Protest Police Brutality” to protest the beating of Peter Yew.

May 19, 1972: First Malcolm X Day Celebration in D.C.

In a personal essay about the longest-running, largest annual event to celebrate the legacy of Malcolm X, Charles Stephenson describes the celebration’s founding and impact of that day in history.

May 19, 1930: Lorraine Hansberry Born

Lorraine Hansberry was an author and activist who wrote “A Raisin in the Sun.”

Portrait of Yuri Kochiyama with raised fist.

May 19, 1921: Yuri Kochiyama Born

Political activist Yuri Kochiyama was born in San Pedro, California.

May 19, 1918: Mary Turner Lynching

Mary Turner, a young African American woman who was eight months pregnant, was lynched in Lowndes County, Georgia.

May 19, 1856: Charles Sumner Crime Against Kansas Speech

Charles Sumner delivered a speech denouncing slavery and the need for Kansas to become a free state.

May 18, 1896: Plessy v. Ferguson Ruling

Plessy v. Ferguson upheld the constitutionality of racial segregation laws for public facilities.

Newspaper following the Miami Riots of 1980.

May 17, 1980: Miami Riots Begin

Following the acquittal of four Miami police officers in the brutal murder of Arthur McDuffie, Black residents rose up in protest at the injustice of these acquittals.

May 17, 1968: Catonsville Nine Burn Draft Records

Nine people entered the Selective Service Offices, removed and burned draft records, and were collectively arrested in protest of the Vietnam War — they became known as the Catonsville Nine.

Spottswood Thomas Bolling Jr. and his mother Mrs. Sarah Bolling of the Bolling v. Sharpe school desegregation case, decided on the same day as Brown v. Board. Image: © The Washington Post by permission from the Washingtoniana Division.

May 17, 1954: Brown v. Board Ruling

After decades of organizing and strategic efforts by parents, teachers, lawyers, and more — the U.S. Supreme Court issued the unanimous decision in Brown v. Board of Education on school segregation.

May 16, 1950: Briggs v. Elliott Challenges School Segregation

With the help of the NAACP, local African American parents in South Carolina fought back against school segregation in a case that eventually helped to end segregation of public facilities across the nation.

May 16, 1918: The Sedition Act of 1918 Enacted

The Sedition Act of 1918 was enacted to extend the Espionage Act of 1917. It forbade the use of “disloyal, profane, scurrilous, or abusive language” about the U.S. government.