Zinn Education Project

Feb. 2 and 5, 1951: Virginia Executes the Martinsville Seven

In 1951, the Commonwealth of Virginia executed seven Black men despite a national campaign in their defense.

partial book cover showing four faces of people lynched on Long Island.

Feb. 5, 1946: Ferguson Brothers Killed By Police on Long Island

Two African American brothers — Charles and Alphonso Ferguson — were shot and killed by a white police officer in the segregated Freeport neighborhood of Long Island, New York.

Feb. 5, 1866: Thaddeus Stevens Proposes Land Distribution Amendment

Congressman Thaddeus Stevens offered an amendment to the Freedmen's Bureau Bill to authorize the distribution of public land.

Feb. 4, 1899: War of Philippine Independence

When the United States refused to recognize Philippine independence, Philippine Republic president Emilio Aguinaldo declared war.

Feb. 3, 1964: New York City School Children Boycott School

More than 450,000 New York City school children boycotted school as part of a protest for quality schools for Black and Latino students.

The Fifteenth Amendment and its results poster | Zinn Education Project: Teaching People's History

Feb. 3, 1870: 15th Amendment Ratified

The 15th Amendment to the United States Constitution officially granted African American men the right to vote.

Feb. 3, 1868: First Freedmen’s Bureau Teacher Appointed in Lafayette Parish

Walter H. Williams was the first Black teacher appointed to a Freedmen’s Bureau School in Lafayette Parish, Louisiana during Reconstruction.

Feb. 2, 1959: The Norfolk 17 Attend Formerly All-White Schools

In Norfolk, where schools had been closed for months rather than desegregate, 17 African American students began attending six previously all-white middle and high schools on February 2, 1959.

Feb. 2, 1848: Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed, ending the U.S. Mexico War and extending the boundaries of the United States west to the Pacific Ocean.

Feb. 2, 1512: Taíno Leader Hatuey Executed in Cuba

Hatuey was a freedom fighter in the early 1500s who mobilized Caribbean islanders against invasion, theft, and murder by European conquistadors.

This Day in History by William Loren Katz

Feb. 1, 1960: The Greensboro Sit-in Begins

Four African-American North Carolina A&T University students began a sit-in protest at a Woolworth’s whites-only lunch counter.

Jan. 31, 1964: WWII Veteran Louis Allen Murdered

Louis Allen, a WWII veteran who witnessed and was willing to testify about the murder of a voting rights worker in Mississippi, was murdered.

Jan. 31, 1938: Emma Tenayuca Leads Pecan Shellers Strike

Tenayuca was known as “La Pasionaria de Texas” for her commitment to justice for Mexican American laborers.

Jan. 30, 1884: Couple Reunited During Reconstruction

During the Reconstruction Era, people emancipated from slavery searched for their loved ones throughout the United States and Canada. They often used "last seen" ads. This is one case of successful reunification.

Jan. 30, 1868: Speech in Defense of 14th Amendment

U.S. Senator Cragin spoke against delaying the expansion of suffrage. He countered the statements by white Democrats, saying the real reason they were opposed to Black suffrage was because they could not control the votes.