August 13 Peace Love Art Activism
Native Americans
August 13, 1946: The Indian Claims Commission was a judicial panel for relations between the US Federal Government and Native American tribes. It was established Congress to hear claims of Indian tribes against the United States. The commission was conceived as way to thank Native America for its unprecedented service in World War II and as a way to relieve the anxiety and resentment caused by America’s history of colonization of Indigenous peoples. The Commission created a process for tribes to address their grievances against the United States, and offered monetary compensation for territory lost as a result of broken federal treaties. However, by accepting the government’s monetary offer, the aggrieved tribe abdicated any right to raise their claim again in the future, and on occasion gave up their federal status as a tribe after accepting compensation. NYT article (see August 1, 1953)
August 13 Peace Love Art Activism
BLACK HISTORY
Executive Order 10479
August 13, 1953: President Dwight Eisenhower signed Executive Order 10479. It created the Government Contract Committee which was established to help insure compliance with, and successful execution of, the equal employment opportunity program of the United States Government. (see Sept 1)
Lamar Smith
August 13, 1955: Lamar Smith, a 63-year-old farmer and World War I veteran was a voting rights activist and a member of the Regional Counsel of Negro Leadership (RCNL). On August 2 in Brookhaven, Mississippi, he had voted in the primary and helped get others out to vote. There was a run-off primary scheduled for August 23. On August 13, Smith was at the courthouse helping other black voters to fill out absentee ballots so they could vote in the runoff without exposing themselves to violence at the polls. He was shot to death in the front of the courthouse in Brookhaven, Lincoln County, at around 10 a.m.
Contemporary reports say there were “dozens of” white witnesses, including the local sheriff, who saw a white man covered with blood leaving the scene. No witnesses would come forward and the three men who had been arrested went free. (see Aug 19)
INDEPENDENCE DAY
August 13, 1960: Central African Republic independent from France. [NYT article] (see ID for full 1960s list)
Watts
August 13, 1965: National Guard enters Watts riots in L.A. (BH, see Aug 20; RR, see July 18, 1966)
Booker T Mixon
August 13, 2012: on October 23, 1969 Booker T Mixon died of what authorities reported to be a hit-and-run accident, despite very suspicious circumstances.
In the fall of 2008 the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) opened an investigation into this matter after a query of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History found multiple news articles about the unusual circumstances surrounding Mixon’s death.
The FBI obtained the coroner’s report. The FBI interviewed some of Mixon’s surviving relatives; people who were in local law enforcement at the time of Mixon’s death; and community members who may have had information about Mixon’s death. The FBI also attempted to identify and interview Mixon’s former employer; the patrolman who found Mixon lying by the side of the road; the doctor who treated Mixon; and the reporter who covered Mixon’s death for the Chicago Defender. The FBI also attempted to locate Mixon’s hospital records. Further, the FBI contacted various Mississippi law enforcement and government officials to request searches of the records of the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office, and the Mississippi Bureau of Investigations; conducted an online search of materials at the University of Southern Mississippi Library; searched the records of the Southern Poverty Law Center; conducted a review of microfiche records of the Clarksdale Press Register; searched the internet for relevant references and media articles; and sent a letter to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People requesting information.
The FBI’s request for records from the following offices were met with negative results: the Quitman County Sheriff’s Office; the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office; the Mississippi Department of Public Safety; the University of Southern Mississippi Library; and the National Association for the Advancement for Colored People.
On this date the FBI recommended that the case be closed without any prosecutions. (see Oct 2)
August 13 Peace Love Art Activism
August 13 Music et al
Beatles Help!
August 13, 1965, The Beatles: US release of Help!.
- Label: Capitol (US)
- Recorded: 15–19 February, 13 April, 10 May & 14–17 June 1965
- Released: 13 August 1965
- Produced by George Martin and Dave Dexter, Jr.
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Side one
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Side two
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While it may appear that the Beatles are holding out their arms in a semaphore-like manner to spell out the letters H E L P, they are actually spell out the letters N V U J.
Beatles 1965 tour
August 13, 1965: The Beatles arrived at Kennedy International Airport for a tour of North America. The set list for the tour was ‘Twist and Shout’, ‘She’s a Woman’, ‘I Feel Fine’, ‘Dizzy Miss Lizzie’, ‘Ticket to Ride’, ‘Everybody’s Trying to Be My Baby’, ‘Can’t Buy Me Love’, ‘Baby’s in Black’, ‘Act Naturally’, ‘A Hard Day’s Night’, ‘Help!’, and ‘I’m Down’ and ‘I Wanna Be Your Man.’ The tour was not a happy one for The Beatles, John Lennon took to screaming off-microphone obscenities at the audiences. [NYT article] (see Aug 14)
see Rock Venues/Future Woodstock Performers for more
August 13, 1965: The Matrix, San Francisco, opened. Jefferson Airplane’s first show. (RV, see Oct 16; FWP, see “in October”)
Summer in the City
August 13 – September 2, 1966: “Summer in the City” by the Lovin’ Spoonful #1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Beatle roast
August 13, 1966: KLUE-AM of Longview, TX held the first of the “Beatles bonfires,” where ex-Beatle fans came to burn the groups’ records in protest to John’s Jesus statement.
In Cleveland, the Reverend Thurman H. Babbs, of the New Haven Baptist Church, called for the excommunication of all Beatles fans.
In an interesting twist, the morning after KLUE’s bonfire, the stations’s radio tower was struck by lightning, throwing the station off the air. (see Aug 23)
August 13 – 14: Wonderland Pop Festival, Wonderland Gardens, London, Canada (see Wonderland for a bit more)
The [bumpy] Road to Bethel
Wednesday 13 August 1969
- nearly 30,000 people had already shown up for festival and are in the “bowl.” Bill Hanley pulled his sound truck into the service road behind the stage, plugged in some equipment to a portable amplifier and piped prerecorded music for the appreciative crowd.
- staff technicians notice drop in water pressure throughout site. Audience members had accidentally stepped on and cracked plastic pipes. Repairs made.
- John Roberts with his father and brother, arrived on site to discover that there are no ticket booths for the 30,000 people already on-site.
- the suit against the festival withdrawn after a promise of police protection for the residents was agreed to.
- it is discovered that the $200 an hour crane is trapped within its own construction of the pedestrian bridge over West Shore Road.
- NYC Police Commissioner Howard Leary reminded all NYC police officers that “moonlighting” was strictly prohibited.
- NY State Police “randomly” stop and frisk young people in cars at Harriman interchange on NY State Thruway. Drivers, passengers, and cars were checked for anything illegal. (see Chronology for complete Woodstock story)
August 13 Peace Love Art Activism
Hurricane Katrina
Katrina shootings and cover-up
August 13, 2008: District Judge Raymond Bigelow dismissed the indictments against the New Orleans police officers after his finding that the prosecutors had wrongly instructed the grand jury, and that testimony of three of the accused officers had been divulged to other witnesses in the case. The US Dept of Justice and the FBI would subsequently investigate the case. NYT article (see Katrina for expanded chronology)
August 13 Peace Love Art Activism
FREE SPEECH & Colin Kaepernick
August 13, 2017: NFL Michael Bennett remained seated during the national anthem. The outspoken Bennett had expressed support for Kaepernick in the past, and as the Seahawks faced the Chargers in preseason action, he remained seated for the national anthem. (FS & CK, see Sept 24)