June 5, 1981: AIDS Epidemic Recognized by Medical Community
The CDC published a medical study about five gay men, plagued by a mysterious autoimmune disease (AIDS), in June 1981.
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This Day in People's History
Welcome to the This Day in People's History (#tdih) series. Search people’s history events by date, theme, state, or keyword.
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June 5, 1950: The Supreme Court and School Segregation Cases
The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs in three cases that weakened the structure of legalized segregation.
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June 5, 1865: Norfolk’s Black Community Presents Address for Equal Rights
The Colored Monitor Union Club organized and released their address for equal rights in Norkfolk, Virginia, soon after the Civil War ended.
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June 4, 2010: Haitian Farmers Burn “Gift” of Monsanto Seeds
Approximately 10,000 Haitian farmers protested the donation of 475 tons of Monsanto hybrid seeds.
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June 4, 1967: Muhammad Ali Summit
African American athletes gathered to support Muhammed Ali’s refusal to serve in Vietnam.
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June 4, 1919: Congress Passes 19th Amendment and Sends to States for Ratification
Congress passed the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution.
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June 3, 1946: Morgan v. Commonwealth of Virginia
SCOTUS ruled against Jim Crow segregation on interstate commerce in Morgan v. Commonwealth of Virginia, leading to Journey of Reconciliation Freedom Rides.
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June 3, 1943: The Zoot Suit Riots
White U.S. servicemen and police entered a majority-Mexican American neighborhood in East Los Angeles and attacked and detained hundreds of young people in the “zoot suit riots.”
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June 2, 1863: Harriet Tubman Frees Nearly 800 People
Harriet Tubman planned and guided a significant armed raid (becoming the first woman to do so in the Civil War) against Confederate forces, supply depots, and plantations along the Combahee River in coastal South Carolina.
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June 1, 1968: Founding of Drum and Spear Bookstore
First opened in 1968, Drum and Spear was the first endeavor of the Afro-American Resources, Inc. founded by SNCC organizers Charlie Cobb, Courtland Cox, and others. The bookstore quickly became a central hub of knowledge to “disseminate information by and about Black people in the African Diaspora.”
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June 1, 1967: Vietnam Veterans Against the War Founded
The Vietnam Veterans Against the War (VVAW) was founded in New York.
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June 1, 1868: Navajo Treaty of 1868
Bringing an end to the Navajo Wars, the Navajo Treaty of 1868 created a sovereign nation for the Navajo peoples and returned those interned at Fort Sumner following the Long Walk.
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May 31, 1921: Tulsa Massacre
In one of countless white supremacist massacres in U.S. history, white supremacists destroyed a thriving Black community in Oklahoma, known today as the Tulsa Massacre.
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May 30, 1942: Fred Korematsu Arrested
Fred Korematsu was arrested on a street corner in San Leandro, California for resisting Executive Order 9066, in which all people of Japanese descent were incarcerated in U.S. concentration camps.
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May 30, 1937: Memorial Day Massacre
The Chicago Police Department shot and killed ten unarmed demonstrators in Chicago on Memorial Day.
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May 29, 1941: Disney Animators’ Strike
Disney animators went on strike and demanded unionization.
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May 28, 1963: Woolworth Sit-in in Jackson, Mississippi
Students and faculty from Tougaloo College held a sit-in at the Woolworth’s lunch counter in Jackson, Mississippi.
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May 27, 1972: First African Liberation Day Demonstration on the National Mall
The first African Liberation Day drew some 60,000 demonstrators in cities across the United States and Canada, including one on the National Mall in Washington D. C.
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May 27, 1958: Ernest Green Graduates from Little Rock
Ernest Green became the first African-American to graduate from Little Rock Central High School in 1958.
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May 27, 1954: “Black Monday” Speech Incites White Supremacy
Future Mississippi Supreme Court Justice Tom P. Brady delivered a racist speech called “Black Monday” in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education decision, inspiring many white leaders to join the White Citizens’ Council.
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