Kenneth C. Davis's Blog, page 129
September 21, 2009
Banned Books Week
Each year, the American Library Association and other groups mark Banned Books Week during the last week in September. This year it begins Saturday September 26 and continues through October 3.
In a time when some American parents don't want their children to hear the President of the United States give a speech on education values, the importance of this reminder of the right to free expression and the value of THINKING is more urgent than ever,
Where are they pulling books out of libraries...
September 18, 2009
TODAY IN HISTORY: The Fugitive Slave Act
Congress, in its infinite wisdom, often makes bad law. Today is a reminder of that fundamental truth.
When: On September 18, 1890, Congress passed the Fugitive Slave Act, which allowed slave owners to reclaim slaves who had escaped to other states.
Why: The Fugitive Slave Act was part of a larger "Compromise of 1850," intended to settle the question of extending slavery into new territories and avoid breaking apart the Union. (Guess what? It didn't work.)
What: Under the law, aid to escaping...
September 16, 2009
A Tale of Two Libraries
The headline was a shocker.
All Free Library of Philadelphia Branch, Regional and Central Libraries Closed Effective Close of Business October 2, 2009
I read about the possible closing of the Philadelphia Free Library –in the city where Benjamin Franklin helped invent the public library in 1731—with shock, sadness, and dismay. And more than a little anger.
Angry that a nation so dependent upon free expression, learning, technology, information and access pays lip service to these ideals but ...
September 15, 2009
Don't Know Much About the Birmingham Bombings
September 15, like September 11, deserves to be remembered. On this day in 1963, a murderous bombing took the lives of innocent Americans –four children. The terrorist bombers were also Americans –members of the Ku Klux Klan. In recording the bombing 20 years later, Howell Raines once wrote,
In the mindlessness of its evil, the 16th Street bombing was also the most heinous act of the era.
When In the early morning of Sunday, September 15, 1963.
Where The 16th Street Baptist Church in...
September 14, 2009
TODAY IN HISTORY: Birth of an Anthem
It was September 13, 1814, American was at war with England for the second time since 1776. Francis Scott Key was an attorney attempting to negotiate the return of a civilian prisoner held by the British who had just burned Washington DC and had set their sights on Baltimore. As the British attacked the city, Key watched the naval bombardment from a ship in Baltimore's harbor. In the morning, he could see that the Stars and Stripes still flew over Fort McHenry.
But here's what they didn't...
September 9, 2009
TODAY IN HISTORY–THE STONO REBELLION
For those still stuck with the Gone With the Wind view of American slavery, this is the anniversary of one of the largest and most violent slave insurrections in American History. It wasn't anything like the picture Margaret Mitchell painted. The Stono Rebellion was one of hundreds of violent slave uprisings, refuting the long-held notion of docile slaves and paternalistic owners.
WHEN: On September 9, 1739 –Early Sunday morning
WHERE: The Stono River, 20 miles south of Charleston, South...
September 4, 2009
Richard Wright
One of the most powerful reading experiences in my life was discovering the work of Richard Wright when I was a teenager in the 1960s. Like many great writers, Richard Wright offered that vision of truth and reality that can change our perspectives forever.
Grandson of slaves, Wright was born this date (September 4) in 1908 on a sharecropper's farm in Natchez, Mississippi. A life of oppression and poverty led to his career as one of the most influential writers of his day. Moving to Chicago, ...
September 2, 2009
TODAY IN HISTORY: V-J DAY
Yesterday, September 1st, marked the beginning of World War II in 1939. Today, September 2d, marks the end six years later.
When: On this day in 1945, Japan surrendered, "formally and unconditionally," in a ceremony aboard the U.S.S. Missouri.
What: In the 20 minute ceremony, twelve signatures were required to end the bloody Pacific conflict, begun when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. As the ceremony ended, the AP report read,
the sun burst through low-hanging clouds as a...
September 1, 2009
TODAY IN HISTORY: NAZI GERMANY INVADES POLAND
WHAT: 70 Years ago today, World War II began. Hitler's German Army overran an almost defenseless Poland. The war that ravaged Europe and would eventually spread around the world was now underway.
WHO: Adolf Hitler's Nazi Germany had absorbed Austria in the Anschluss (annexation) in March 1938. Then Hitler demanded the return of the German Sudetenland, Czech territory since 1918, in September 1938.
WHEN: At a September 1938 conference in Munich, the prime ministers of Great Britain and France acce
August 31, 2009
Labor Pains: A Don't Know Much About Minute
The end of summer, a three-day weekend, burgers on the grill, and a back-to-school shopping spree, right? And the most important question, "Can I still wear white?"
But very few people associate Labor Day with a turbulent time in American History. That's what Labor Day is really about The holiday was born during the violent union-busting 19th century, when sweat shop conditions killed children, when there was no minimum wage and when going on vacation meant you were fired.
If you like holidays
