Ridgefield Allies

Today in “Hidden” History is a daily listing of important but little-known events illustrating the range of innovators, contributors, or incidents excluded from formal history lessons or common knowledge. Hidden history is intended not as an exhaustive review, but merely as an illustration of how popular narratives "hide" many matters of fundamental importance. Bookmark this page and check daily to quickly expand your knowledge. Suggest entries for Today in “Hidden” History by clicking the Contact Us link. Entries for July 02:

Date	Type	Event
1777		Vermont formally abolishes slavery by constitutional dictum. Although estimates place the number of enslaved persons at 25 in 1770 slavery was banned outright upon the founding of Vermont in July 1777, and by a further provision in its Constitution, existing male slaves become free at the age of 21 and females at the age of 18. Not only did Vermont's legislature agree to abolish slavery entirely, it also moved to provide full voting rights for African American males. According to the Smithsonian's National Museum of African-American History and Culture, "Vermont's July 1777 declaration was not entirely altruistic either. While it did set an independent tone from the 13 colonies, the declaration's wording was vague enough to let Vermont's already-established slavery practices continue." Harvey Amani Whitfield's book, The Problem of Slavery in Early Vermont, reports that among those violating the abolition of slavery were Vermont Supreme Court Judge Stephen Jacob and Levi Allen, brother of the military leader Ethan Allen. In 1858 the "Freedom Act" was ratified, declaring that any slave brought into Vermont was free. Learn more.
1822		Denmark Vesey, a free Black carpenter, is executed in Charleston, South Carolina, for planning to emancipate enslaved people. Weeks before his execution, Mr. Vesey was accused of designing a rebellion to emancipate thousands of enslaved Black people from Charleston and the surrounding plantations. Even though no rebellion ever occurred and no white people were harmed in any way, Mr. Vesey and 34 other people allegedly involved were executed. After Mr. Vesey was executed, white Charleston officials claimed the Black church had played a crucial role in the planning. They ordered the AME members to disperse and burned the church to the ground. Black churches were soon outlawed in Charleston; the AME church was the last Black church to exist there until after the Civil War. In 1865, under the leadership of Mr. Vesey’s son, Robert Vesey, the church was finally rebuilt. Nearly 200 years after Mr. Vesey’s execution, in 2015, a white 21-year-old attended bible study at the church—renamed the Emanuel AME Church—and opened fire on the other worshippers in attendance, all of whom were Black. Learn more.
1908		American legal giant Thurgood Marshall is born. Marshall was a civil rights activist and the first African-American Supreme Court Justice in the history of the United States, serving on the court from October 1967 until October 1991. Prior to his judicial service, he successfully argued several cases before the Supreme Court, including the landmark Brown v. Board of Education. Learn more.
1925		Civil rights activist and martyr Medgar Wiley Evers is born. Evers was the Mississippi field secretary for the NAACP, and a World War II veteran who had served in the United States Army. He worked to overturn segregation at the University of Mississippi, end the segregation of public facilities, and expand opportunities for African Americans, which included the enforcement of voting rights. Due to his efforts to challenge segregation and to advance voting rights Evers was assassinated in 1963 by a white supremacist. All white juries twice failed to reach verdicts in trials of Evers's murderer; the assassin was finally convicted at a third trial in 1994, 21 years after the assassination. Learn more.
1935		Playwright Ed Bullins is born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Among the best known playwrights of the Black Arts Movement, he has won numerous awards, including the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award and several Obie Awards. He was also the Minister of Culture for the Black Panthers. Learn more.
1964		President Lyndon B. Johnson gives a live television- and radio-broadcast address to the nation to announce and witness his signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Johnson had led the passage of the Act, considered by many historians as one of the most important measures enacted by the U.S. Congress in the 20th Century. Read Johnson's Address.