Zinn Education Project

People protesting the banning of books at public schools and libraries, with one person holding a sign reading "I read banned books."

Jan. 4, 1977: Students Successfully Sue School Board Over Book Bans

Fed up with books being banned by the school administration, students at Island Trees High School in Long Island, New York sued the school board for this unconstitutional censorship in a case that went all the way up to the Supreme Court.

Jan. 4, 1965: Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party Challenges Congress

Hundreds of Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party supporters went to support the Challenge to the seating of the Mississippi delegation.

Jan. 4, 1874: Adelbert Ames Becomes Governor of Mississippi

Adelbert Ames become the elected governor of Mississippi during the Reconstruction era.

Jan. 3, 1966: Sammy Younge Jr. Murdered

Samuel Younge Jr., Navy vet, Tuskegee student, activist was killed in Alabama for using a “whites-only” bathroom. SNCC issued a powerful statement about his murder and in opposition to the Vietnam War.

Jan. 2, 1962: NBC Bans Weavers for Refusal to Sign Loyalty Oath

The Weavers had their scheduled appearance on the NBC Jack Paar Show cancelled when they refused to sign an oath of political loyalty.

Jan. 2, 1915: John Hope Franklin Born

John Hope Franklin, born this day in Rentiesville and raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma, was one of most important historians of the 20th century.

Jan. 1, 2009: Oscar Grant Killed

Oscar Grant was fatally shot by BART Police in Oakland.

Jan. 1, 1960: Greenville Airport Protest

South Carolina NAACP held Greenville Airport Protest in support of Jackie Robinson.

Jan. 1, 1923: Rosewood Massacre

White supremacists destroyed the Black town of Rosewood, Florida, and murdered many of its residents. Descendants have fought for reparations and recognition of the history.

Jan. 1, 1915: John Henrik Clarke Born in Alabama

The teacher, scholar, and Pan-Africanist intellectual leader was born in Alabama.

a statue of three boys holding up the one in the middle

Jan. 1, 1900: Notorious Dozier School for Boys Opens

The infamous Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys in Marianna, Florida swirled with allegations of cruelty, rape, and physical abuse for nearly all of its 111 years.

Jan. 1, 1863: Emancipation Proclamation

The Emancipation Proclamation took effect in 1863. Who did it “emancipate”? And who gets credited?

Jan. 1, 1863: Tunis Campbell Commissioned for Port Royal

Tunis Campbell, who assisted in the Port Royal Experiment to assist freed people during Reconstruction, was an abolitionist, state senator, and justice of the peace.

Jan. 1, 1804: Haitian Independence

Haiti became a free republic after a revolution, declaring independence for ALL people.

Dec. 31, 1972: Roberto Clemente Dies

Puerto Rican Roberto Clemente died in a plane crash while traveling at great risk in response to urgent requests to deliver help to earthquake devastated Nicaragua.

Dec 31, 1862: Watch Meetings for Emancipation Proclamation

African Americans across the United States, free and enslaved, in the North and South, held watch meetings for the abolition of slavery.

Dec. 30, 1971: Daniel Ellsberg and Anthony Russo Jr. Indicted for Releasing the Pentagon Papers

Daniel Ellsberg and Anthony J. “Tony” Russo Jr. were indicted for releasing the Pentagon Papers, detailing the secret history of U.S. involvement in Vietnam.

Dec. 30, 1936: First Sit-Down Strike Begins in Flint

The Flint sit-down strike represented a shift in union organizing strategies from craft unionism (organizing white male skilled workers) to industrial unionism (organizing all the workers in an industry). The sit-down strike changed the balance of power between employers and workers.

Charles Spurgeon Rucks | Zinn Education Project

Dec. 29, 1923: Terror Attack on African Americans in Catcher, Arkansas

The Catcher “Race Riot” began in Arkansas, leading to the creation of another sundown town.

Colonialists attacking Indigenous woman during Wounded Knee Massacre.

Dec. 29, 1890: Wounded Knee Massacre

A Lakota encampment on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation was attacked by the U.S. Army and close to 300 Native Americans were murdered near Wounded Knee Creek in South Dakota.

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