June 7, 1998: James Byrd, Jr., of Texas is killed when white supremacists drag him behind a pickup truck along an asphalt pavement.

James Byrd, Jr. was an African-American who was murdered by three men, of whom at least two were white supremacists, in Jasper, Texas, on June 7, 1998. Shawn Berry, Lawrence Russell Brewer, and John King dragged Byrd behind a pick-up truck along an asphalt road. Byrd, who remained conscious throughout most of the ordeal, was killed when his body hit the edge of a culvert, severing his right arm and head.

The murderers drove on for another mile before dumping his torso in front of an African-American cemetery in Jasper. Byrd’s lynching-by-dragging gave impetus to passage of a Texas hate crimes law. It later led to the federal Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, commonly known as the Matthew Shepard Act, which passed on October 22, 2009, and which President Barack Obama signed into law on October 28, 2009.

THE MURDER:
On June 7, 1998, Byrd, age 49, accepted a ride from Shawn Berry (age 24), Lawrence Russell Brewer (age 31) and John King (age 23). Berry, who was driving, was acquainted with Byrd from around town. Instead of taking Byrd home, the three men took Byrd to a remote county road out of town, beat him severely, urinated on him and chained him by his ankles to their pickup truck before dragging him for three miles. Brewer later claimed that Byrd’s throat had been slashed by Berry before he was dragged. However, forensic evidence suggests that Byrd had been attempting to keep his head up while being dragged, and an autopsy suggested that Byrd was alive during much of the dragging. Byrd died after his right arm and head were severed after his body hit a culvert. Byrd’s brain and skull were found intact, further suggesting he maintained consciousness while being dragged.

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Source: blackthen.com

On June 7, 1776, Richard Henry Lee of Virginia introduces a resolution for independence to the Continental Congress in Philadelphia; John Adams seconds the motion.

Lee’s resolution declared: “That these United Colonies are, and of right out to be, free and independent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved; that measures should be immediately taken for procuring the assistance of foreign powers, and a Confederation be formed to bind the colonies more closely together.”

During the ensuing debates, it became clear that New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland and South Carolina were as yet unwilling to declare independence, but would likely be ready to vote in favor of a break with England in due course. Thus, Congress agreed to delay the vote on the Lee Resolution until July 1. In the intervening period, Congress appointed a committee to draft a formal declaration of independence. Its members were John Adams of Massachusetts, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania, Roger Sherman of Connecticut, Robert R. Livingston of New York and Thomas Jefferson of Virginia. Jefferson, well-known to be the best writer of the group, was selected to be the primary author of the document, which was presented to Congress for review on June 28, 1776.

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Source: history.com

From Tue, Jun 6, 3:50 AM PDT To Tue, Jun 6, 5:00 PM PDT – by NWS Seattle

WASHINGTON STATE

…ELEVATED FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS TODAY…

Breezy north winds will continue on Tuesday alongside afternoon relative humidity values in the 20 to 30 percent range during the afternoon and into the evening hours.

These conditions will combine to produce a favorable environment for fire starts and fire spreads.

by NWS Seattle

From Mon, Jun 5, 3:52 PM PDT To Tue, Jun 6, 5:00 PM PDT

Special Weather Statement issued June 05 at 3:52PM PDT by NWS Seattle

…ELEVATED FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS THROUGH TUESDAY…

Breezy north winds will continue on Tuesday alongside afternoon relative humidity values in the 20 to 30 percent range during the afternoon and into the evening hours.

Conditions will also become unstable on Tuesday as mid- level Haines values approach or reach 6.

These conditions will combine to produce a favorable environment for fire starts and fire spreads.

Zoot Suit Riots

‘Zoot suits’ were oversize, high-wasted and wide-legged suits associated with Latino, African-American, Italian-American and Filipino-American communities in the United States during the 1940s. In Los Angeles, simmering tensions between white residents and the Latino community burst into the open in 1943 after an argument between a group of servicemen and Latino youths devolved into a fight on June 3.

Many servicemen and city residents targeted Latinos wearing zoot suits because, in the midst of World War II rationing, they felt the clothing was unpatriotic due to the amount of fabric required to make the suits. The race riot spread throughout the city, with hundreds of attacks against youths over the following days.

The imbalance of the police response is evident in the fact that no soldiers were ever arrested for their part in the riots, but many Latinos were charged. Local press lauded the attacks as cleaning up ‘hoodlums’, and the city council banned zoot suits in LA city limits. Many later activists such as Malcolm X and Cesar Chavez noted the riots as inspiration to get into political activism.

Source:

Photographer: John T. Burns
Date taken: June 7, 1943
Location taken: Los Angeles, California, USA

Source: Wikimedia Commons