News & Opinions
How Much Do We Know about American History?
0 Comments06/30/11
The Fourth of July, known formally as Independence Day, did not become an official U.S. holiday until 1941. To celebrate this Independence Day, the Milestone editors invite you to test your knowledge of U.S. history. Newsweek’s 2011 poll showed that nearly 40 percent of the 1,000 Americans in a randomly chosen sample group could not pass an abbreviated version of the U.S. citizenship test—that’s the same test given to immigrants seeking American citizenship.
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Doc of the Day: Patrice Lumumba on Congolese Independence
by Neil Schlager · June 30, 2011
On June 30, 1960, Patrice Lumumba, the first prime minister of the former Belgian Congo, gave a fiery speech at the granting of Congolese independence after years of oppressive colonial rule. In the speech, Lumumba denounced the oppression and humiliation of colonial rule in the presence of Belgium’s King Baudouin. The king, scandalized, nearly left Léopoldville (modern-day Kinshasa), but he was persuaded to stay for the lunch that followed the ceremony. Lumumba, for his part, was persuaded to give a second speech at the lunch, in which he attempted to make amends, crediting Belgium and its monarchy for its positive contributions to Congo. However, the damage had been done.
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Doc of the Day: Eugene Debs Addresses the IWW
by Neil Schlager · June 29, 2011
On June 29, 1905, Eugene Debs spoke before the founding of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW, or Wobblies). The IWW was (and continues to be to this day) one of the most radical political organizations ever developed on American soil. Nominally a trade union, its actual goal was a revolution that would place the working class in control of the means of production. While the group offered little detail about the aftermath of this revolution, its efforts at achieving this goal resulted in the development of many new tactics for the American labor movement. For example, the IWW pioneered the organization of all workers regardless of race or class, a tactic that Debs had advocated since the Pullman strike. One way in which the IWW gained sympathy for its cause was to hold free-speech struggles, campaigns for the right to air its message rather than campaigns over the message itself. Obviously, after the injunction that ended the Pullman strike, Debs sympathized with this tactic too. It was no surprise, then, that Debs came to the founding convention of the IWW in Chicago and addressed the gathering.
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Doc of the Day: John Foster Dulles on Communist China
by Neil Schlager · June 28, 2011
On June 28, 1957, Secretary of State John Foster Dulles delivered his address on U.S. policy toward Communist China. Dulles did not mince words when discussing China. In this address, he casts the People’s Republic of China as an aggressive, violent, expansionist global threat that despises the United States for interfering with its moves toward global domination. He sums up the U.S. refusal to recognize China by stating that it is in the best interest of the United States to support “free” nations and contrary to U.S. interests to support Communist regimes. Therefore, he states, the United States is opposed to allowing China entrance into the United Nations and refuses to trade or converse with China.
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Doc of the Day: Emma Goldman’s “Philosophy of Atheism”
by Neil Schlager · June 27, 2011
On June 27, 1869, the radical thinker and anarchist Emma Goldman was born in Kovno, Lithuania (then part of the Russian Empire). Her essay “The Philosophy of Atheism“ was published in Mother Earth in 1916, but an earlier version was delivered as a lecture for the Congress of Religious Philosophies on July 29, 1915, as part of the Panama-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco. This locates the essay in the context of Goldman’s extensive lecture tours and of one of the most important radical journals in U.S. history. The journal was edited by Goldman and Alexander Berkman from its founding in 1906 until it ceased publication in August 1917 under pressure from the U.S. government for its opposition to American entry into World War I.
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Doc of the Day: Nasser on the Suez Canal
by Neil Schlager · June 23, 2011
On June 23, 1956, Gamal Abdel Nasser became president of Egypt. The next month, he issued the decree to nationalize the Suez Canal. Under this law, Egypt nationalized the Suez Canal—that is, took over its ownership and operation, thus removing the canal from British (and to a lesser extent French) control. The Suez Canal links the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea, the latter of which provides access to the Indian Ocean. The area surrounding the Suez Canal is the only land bridge connecting Africa and Asia. For nearly a century prior to nationalization, the canal had played a vital role in world commerce and in Britain’s ability to communicate with and defend its colonies in Asia. More recently, the canal has functioned as a pipeline for oil and other commodities.
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Doc of the Day: GI BIll
by Neil Schlager · June 22, 2011
On June 22, 1944, President Franklin Roosevelt signed the GI Bill. Formally called the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act, the GI Bill was one of the most important—and popular—federal programs in American history. The GI Bill provided generous benefits to help veterans buy homes or farms, attend college or vocational school, pay living expenses while searching for employment, and ensure access to essential medical care or therapy to heal wounds or overcome disabilities. These benefits changed individual lives and—just as important—transformed American society. The economy boomed, suburbs burgeoned, and colleges and universities expanded because of the GI Bill. In reality, this legislation created a large federal welfare program, but one without most of the liabilities that critics often associated with government efforts to improve social conditions.
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Doc of the Day: Texas v. Johnson
by Neil Schlager · June 21, 2011
On June 21, 1989, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Texas v. Johnson that burning the American flag as a form of political protest is protected by the First Amendment. Texas v. Johnson centered on a radical demonstrator, Gregory Lee Johnson, who chose a particularly dramatic means of expressing his criticism of Republican policies during the 1984 Republican National Convention in Dallas: He burned the American flag. Within a half hour, police had arrested Johnson for violating a Texas statute barring violation of venerated objects. In Texas v. Johnson, the Supreme Court ruled in Johnson’s favor, finding that his controversial act qualified as expressive conduct protected under the First Amendment and that the Texas statute was thereby unconstitutional. Justice William Brennan wrote the majority opinion for the Court.
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Doc of the Day: Westminster Confession
by Neil Schlager · June 20, 2011
On June 20, 1648, the English parliament approved the Westminster Confession, a statement of Christian faith in the tradition of Calvinist, or “Reformed,” Protestantism. The document’s thirty-three chapters were meant to cover all the major issues of Christian theology as they existed in the mid-seventeenth century. The Westminster Confession was created by a group of ministers and theological experts from England and Scotland, mostly Presbyterian in faith, during the English Civil War (1642–1651). The group had originally been summoned by the English parliament to reform the Church of England.
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Site of the Month: BBC Religions
June 17, 2011
The British Broadcasting Corporation is the largest broadcasting organization in the world. It is dedicated to programming that informs and educates as well as entertains. It is established by a royal charter and funded by UK taxpayers. Its reputation as a reliable news source is accepted worldwide. Among its many endeavors, the BBC has created a set of Web pages devoted to world religions. Twenty of the world’s largest religions are represented on the site. For each religion, pages exist that provide a summary “at a glance,” history, beliefs, customs, holy days, people, rites, texts, and more—up to twenty pages for the most common religions. The BBC also hosts image galleries that illustrate religious activities and ceremonies.
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Featured Tech Tool: LucidChart
June 17, 2011
LucidChart is a web application used to create flowcharts, mind maps, and other diagrams. It is being offered free of charge in 2011 for teachers who wish to use it in their classrooms. On the page that explains the free trial, there are examples of how the application is being used in classroom settings in many disciplines. LucidChart can work in a class of 25 or a school of 2,000. The educational accounts are the equivalent of the Team accounts and come equipped with all the premium features.
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Doc of the Day: Abraham Lincoln’s House Divided Speech
by Neil Schlager · June 16, 2011
On June 16, 1858, the Republican Party of Illinois convened at Springfield to nominate its candidate for the U.S. Senate. Taking a first step toward the popular election of U.S. senators, the convention bypassed the state legislature and unanimously nominated Abraham Lincoln as its candidate. Anticipating his nomination, Lincoln had been preparing his acceptance speech a month before the convention, writing out parts on scraps of paper and depositing them in his stovepipe hat. It would be known to history as the “House Divided” speech.
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Doc of the Day: Magna Carta
by Neil Schlager · June 15, 2011
On June 15, 1215, King John of England and his barons and nobles signed the Magna Carta at Runnymede, England. In fact, the barons had forced King John to accept the sixty-three provisions of the Magna Carta (“Great Charter”). The Magna Carta was not originally intended to secure rights for all English citizens. Rather, it was meant to assert the feudal rights of England’s barons, who had become disenchanted with King John’s rule. Soon after it was signed, John ignored the tenets of the charter and began warring with his barons again. Despite the motivations of the authors and signers, the document contains political principles that remain important today.
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Doc of the Day: Nuremberg War Crime Tribunals
by Neil Schlager · June 14, 2011
On June 14, 1940, the Nazis opened a concentration camp at Auschwitz in German-occupied Poland. This camp would become the most infamous of the concentration camps that the Nazis created during World War II, in which millions of Jews and other minorities were murdered. Following the war, many of the remaining Nazi leaders were prosecuted for war crimes at the Nuremberg war crimes tribunals. Read Robert H. Jackson’s opening statement at the Nuremberg tribunals in 1945.
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Doc of the Day: Miranda v. Arizona
by Neil Schlager · June 13, 2011
On June 13, 1966, the U.S. Supreme Court made its decision in Miranda v. Arizona, establishing the principle that all criminal suspects must be advised of their rights before interrogation.
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Doc of the Day: Anne Putnam’s Confession after Salem Witch Trials
by Neil Schlager · June 10, 2011
On June 10, 1692, the first colonist to be convicted of witchcraft in Salem, Massachusetts, was hanged. Read Anne Putnam’s Confession, a revocation of the accusations of witchcraft she had made during the trial.
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Doc of the Day: Censure of Senator Joseph McCarthy
by Neil Schlager · June 09, 2011
On June 9, 1954, the Army-McCarthy hearings on possible Communist infiltration of the U.S. armed forces reached a boiling point when Army counsel Joseph Welch lashed out at Senator Joseph McCarthy for his attack on a member of Welch’s law firm. Read Senate Resolution 301: Censure of Senator Joseph McCarthy, passed in the aftermath of the hearings.
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Doc of the Day: Excerpt from the Qur’an
by Neil Schlager · June 08, 2011
On June 8, 632, the prophet Muhammad died in Medina. Read an excerpt from the Qur’an, the holy book of the Islamic faith revealed to Muhammad.
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Lincolniana: All Things Lincoln Part 1
June 07, 2011
No, it's not a newly discovered species of flora. Lincolniana is a term used to described any material—photographs, newspaper clippings, prints, cartoons, maps, letters, documents, books, or other collectibles—pertaining to Abraham Lincoln.
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Doc of the Day: Gandhi’s “Quit India” Speech
by Neil Schlager · June 07, 2011
On June 7, 1893, Mohandas Gandhi carried out his first act of civil disobedience in protest against racial segregation. Read his 1942 “Quit India” Speech to the All India Congress Committee, an appeal for a mass movement of civil disobedience protesting British imperialism in his native land.
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Doc of the Day: Eisenhower D-day Order
by Neil Schlager · June 06, 2011
On June 6, 1944, The D-day invasion of Europe took place on the beaches of Normandy, France. Read General Dwight D. Eisenhower’s Order of the Day, a call to arms for the landing forces.
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