July: A time for Patriotism—and Protest
America’s greatest patriots are the ones that call out the country
Welcome back to the This Day In Esoteric Political History newsletter. Each week, a member of our team (or a friend of the show) gathers together bits of America’s past and attempts to find a throughline that might add a little understanding to our current moment.
Here’s what happened over the week ahead in American history…
July 18
1792: John Paul Jones, the “Father of the American Navy”, dies in Paris
1944 : A group of almost 1,000 refugees are headed to the United States, where they would eventually be housed at Fort Ontario, in New York. This was the only large group of Holocaust refugees permitted to enter the United States during World War II
1949: Jackie Robinson testifies before the House Committee on Un-American Activities
July 19
1848: The first U.S. women's rights convention is held in Seneca Falls, NY, organized by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott during which The Declaration of Sentiments, which called for women's equality and suffrage, is published
1919: Violent clashes in Washington, D.C., last for nearly a week, with a notable number of white people killed by Black individuals defending themselves.
1984 : A gunman kills 21 people at a McDonald’s in San Ysidro, California. It was one of the earliest public mass shootings in this country.
July 20
1881: Sioux Indian Chief Sitting Bull surrenders to U.S. federal troops
1932: Police fire tear gas on World War I veterans, part of the Bonus Expeditionary Force, who attempt to march to the White House in Washington, D.C.
1945: A petition signed by 70 scientists working on the development of nuclear weapons is circulating in Washington — a petition arguing against the plans to drop weapons on Japan.
July 21
1861: The First Battle of Bull Run occurs during the American Civil War just 30 miles from Washington—close enough for U.S. senators to witness the battle in person
1969: Neil Armstrong becomes the first person to step on the Moon at 2:56:15 AM (GMT)
2011: The space shuttle program comes to an end after 30 years as Atlantis lands at Cape Canaveral, Fla.
July 22
1916: A bombing of a parade in San Francisco kills 10 in the deadliest act of terrorism the city has seen
1937: The U.S. Senate rejects FDR's proposal to enlarge the Supreme Court
1943: 34 people are killed and 670 injured in Detroit, the worst episode of racial violence since 1919
1975: The U.S. House of Representatives votes to restore citizenship to General Robert E. Lee.
July 23
1890: Wyoming is admitted to the Union, becoming the first state to grant women full enfranchisement in its state constitution
1967: 43 people die in a race riot in Detroit
July 24
1866: Tennessee becomes the first Confederate state readmitted to the Union.
1900: Violence erupts in New Orleans after the killing of a police officer. 28 people will ultimately die in what became known as the Robert Charles riots resulting in the deaths of two white policemen.
1959: U.S. Vice President Richard Nixon argues with Nikita Khrushchev, known as the "Kitchen Debate.”
In which we take the above collection of events and find themes, throughlines, rabbit holes and more. This week is Kellie Carter Jackson’s turn at the typewriter.
My relationship is American patriotism is, well, complicated. As a Black American, it can be hard to reconcile one’s pride and the nation’s past without qualifications. Just consider the slavery, segregation or the rampant race riots taking place throughout the twentieth century.
When I think about the month of July, America’s greatest patriots are the ones that call out America to be its best self for all people. The week’s ‘connecting the dots’ highlights several events that are protests or petitions to remind America of its core principles, the ideal of life, liberty, and democracy.
In 1848, the first U.S. women's rights convention is held in Seneca Falls, NY. It’s organized by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott and calls on the nation to accept women’s equality and institute women’s suffrage. It takes place during an all-consuming abolitionist movement to end slavery. But the convention should remind us that we can accomplish more than one goal at the same time. It’s a watershed moment, one that could have easily been included on a national agenda to free and enfranchise the enslaved.
In 1945, a petition was signed by 70 scientists working on the development of nuclear weapons. In a pang of consciousness, they argued against the plans to drop new tools of destruction on Japan. Ethically, these scientists were aware of the weapon’s capability, and they placed the wellbeing of humanity above the need for catastrophic damage and global domination. It takes courage and creativity to offer up alternatives in the face of war. These scientists also exhibited how difficult it can be to walk away from power.
Our efforts to explore space is another example of Americans challenging what is possible. We need people who will push their country to think outside of the box or the bounds of planet earth. In 1969, America witnessed what scientists are capable of when space exploration is supported. On the Apollo 11 mission, Neil Armstrong became the first person to step on the Moon. This event compelled many to think, “if we can go to the moon, what might we accomplish here on earth?” Certainly, establishing equality should be a lower bar. However, it would take another twenty years just to establish rights and protections for Americans with disabilities. In 1990, President George HW Bush signed the American with Disabilities Act, after decades of activism and political pressure from disabilities rights advocates.
Progress is difficult, regression is easy. Change requires constant pressure and activism. The real patriots are those who are able to envision and accomplish the goals of a more inclusive and free society. They challenge America to be better.
—Kellie
A Bit More Esoterica
Here’s Ronald Reagan’s entire 1980 RNC speech that we discussed on today’s episode, if you’re looking for some alternate viewing options this evening (at least one of our hosts said they’ll be checking out American Hustle on Netflix tonight instead).
If you’re in more of a reading mode, we enjoyed this recent piece in Politico about Richard Nixon teaming up with Wilt Chamberlain at the 1968 RNC. Before there were “Black jobs,” there was “Black capitalism.”
A parting thought: We’re going to be covering this topic further in an upcoming episode, so I won’t spoil too much, but as heat continues to bake America, it’s hard not to think about the last time things were this bad, back in the 1930s, when drought and extreme warmth brought about apocalyptic conditions. Even in an election year, FDR addressed the crisis head on in 1936, pushing for massive spending campaigns to effectively rebuild a more sustainable heartland of America. Today, we don’t even know how many people are dying from extreme heat, and we’re expecting little discussion of the crisis during this Presidential cycle.
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