Bill Means, a Lakota member of the American Indian Movement (AIM), which advocates for the rights of American Indians, discusses the events that led to AIM’s takeover and 71-day occupation of Wounded Knee on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation of South Dakota. The complex event that lead to the Wounded … Continue reading
Author: Mitty Steele As told by: Om (Aunt) Ear “After the coup many people from the village joined the Khmer Rouge to fight against the new government…While the government had squashed this uprising, it was only the beginning of the civil war.” The Lon Nol coup occurred on March 18, … Continue reading
Bobby Fischer was an American chess prodigy considered by many to be the greatest chess player of all time. Fischer began competing in the United States Chess Championship at age 14, and at age 15 he became the youngest grandmaster of his time. In 1972, Fischer defeated Boris Spassky of … Continue reading
On February 27, 1973, approximately 200 Oglala Lakota and members of the American Indian Movement (AIM) occupied the town of Wounded Knee, South Dakota, which is located on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. The occupation was imp rotes of the failure of the Oglala Civil Rights Organization to impeach tribal … Continue reading
On February 22, 1974, Samuel Byck attempted to hijack a plane flying out of Baltimore/Washington International Airport in the hopes of crashing it into the White House and killing U.S. President Richard Nixon. Byck first got attention from the Secret Service in 1972, when he threatened Nixon for the first … Continue reading
The Who are a British rock band considered to be one of the most influential of the 20th century. The group formed in 1964, and went on to sell over 100 million records worldwide. In 1969, The Who released their album Tommy, which was about a deaf, dumb and blind … Continue reading
Patricia Hearst, granddaughter of publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst, was kidnapped from her home in Berkely, California on February 4, 1974 by the Symbionese Liberation Army. One condition the SLA gave for Patty Hearst’s release was that her family distribute $70 worth of food to every needy Californian. Hearst’s father … Continue reading
On February 3, 1969, Yasser Arafat became the leader of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). This video is a clip from Arafat’s first address to the United Nations on November 13, 1974, in which he tells them: “I come to you bearing an olive branch in one hand and a … Continue reading
Idi Amin was the third President of Uganda, maintaining power from 1971 to 1979. As a young man, Amin was a member of the British colonial regiment, the King’s African Rifles. Following decolonization, Amin worked his way up to the rank of major general in the Ugandan Army and became … Continue reading
On January 21, 1977, President Jimmy Carter pardoned hundreds of thousands of men who had evaded the Vietnam War draft by either fleeing the country or failing to register. The pardon occurred on President Carter’s first day in office and was the fulfillment of a campaign promise. Not included in … Continue reading
