Seeds of Fire: A People’s Chronology
Recalling events that happened on this day in history.
Memories of struggle, resistance and persistence.
Compiled by Ulli Diemer
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June 25, 1096
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In one of a series of massacres and persecutions, participants in the First Crusade, on their way to attempt to conquer the ‘Holy Land’, slaughter Jews in the Rhineland area of Germany.
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June 25, 1678
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Elena Cornaro Piscopia becomes the first woman to be awarded a doctorate of philosophy.
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June 25, 1798
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The United States Congress passes the Alien Act allowing the President to deport dangerous aliens.
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June 25, 1876
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Battle of the Little Bighorn: U.S. military forces invading native lands in order to force the inhabitants to move onto reservations and make way for white settlers are confronted by a united force of Lakota, Cheyenne, and other groups near the Little Bighorn River. The native forces win a decisive victory over the U.S. 7th Cavalry forces led by George Armstrong Custer.
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June 25, 1903
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Birth of George Orwell (Eric Blair), author and socialist. Orwell’s notable works include Down and Out in Paris and London, The Road to Wigan Pier, Homage to Catalonia (about his experiences in the Spanish Civil War), Animal Farm, and Nineteen Eighty-Four. He also wrote many essays and newspapers columns.
Quotes:
“Every war when it comes, or before it comes, is represented not as a war but as an act of self-defense against a homicidal maniac.”
“The nationalist not only does not disapprove of atrocities committed by his own side, he has a remarkable capacity for not even hearing about them.”
“If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.”
“Who controls the past controls the future: who controls the present controls the past.”
“During times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act.”
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June 25, 1950
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Start of the Korean War.
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June 25, 1967
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Heavyweight boxing champion Mohammed Ali is found guilty of refusing induction into the armed forces of the United States. The boxing authorities pile on as well: they strip Ali of his title and take away his boxing license.
Ali explains his refusal to report for military service as follows:
“No, I am not going 10,000 miles to help murder, kill, and burn other people to simply help continue the domination of white slavemasters over dark people the world over. This is the day and age when such evil injustice must come to an end.”
“Why should they ask me to put on a uniform and go ten thousand miles from home and drop bombs and bullets on brown people in Vietnam while so-called Negro people in Louisville are treated like dogs and denied simple human rights?”
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June 25, 1978
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240,000 people march in San Francisco, California, to oppose a proposed anti-gay law which would allow school boards to ban gay and lesbian teachers. The proposition is rejected in November by 58% of voters.
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