#IAMTROYDAVIS – Black History
Two years ago, in the final hours of his life, I sat with Troy Davis and talked with him as we fought to stop his execution. He made me promise then that, no matter the outcome, the NAACP would remain resolute in the fight against the death penalty.
Dedicate your tears to healing this world and your prayers to ending the death penalty. America must do better than this. And your deeds and actions will help get us there.
Friends : We wage this critical fight in Troy’s name. Last year, our work led to Connecticut repealing the death penalty. This year, Maryland became the first state south of the Mason-Dixon Line to do the same. Those two states now join New Jersey, New York, New Mexico, and Illinois as the fifth and sixth states in six years to abolish the death penalty.
Troy Davis’ legacy serves as a reminder that our justice system will remain broken until the death penalty is abolished across the country. Today, our community is uniting to send a powerful message on the anniversary of Troy Davis’ execution, and we want you to be a part of it.
Tweet our message using the hashtag #IamTroyDavis to support ending capital punishment in America.
Or write a message of your own.
Our message is simple: We must bring an end to this immoral, biased, and ineffective practice and the inequalities that plague our justice system.
It is appalling that the barbaric practice of capital punishment still exists in the United States. Even more so when you consider how easily a man was condemned to die in the face of overwhelming evidence pointing to his innocence.
We’re making progress, Carmen.
We must keep this miscarriage of justice in the hearts and minds of the public if we are to continue moving forward. Help by sending a tweet using the hashtag #IamTroyDavis on today’s solemn anniversary:
http://action.naacp.org/i-am-troy
Thank you,
Benjamin Todd Jealous
President and CEO
NAACP
PS: Next week, join Troy’s family on the I Am Troy Davis book tour. Visit the NAACP website for more details.
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Malcolm Jenkins
The Washington monument
February 22nd
1855 – The U.S. Congress voted to appropriate $200,000 for continuance of the work on the Washington Monument. The next morning the resolution was tabled and it would be 21 years before the Congress would vote on funds again. Work was continued by the Know-Nothing Party in charge of the project.
1859 – U.S. President Buchanan approved the Act of February 22, 1859, which incorporated the Washington National Monument Society “for the purpose of completing the erection now in progress of a great National Monument to the memory of Washington at the seat of the Federal Government.”
1885 – The Washington Monument was officially dedicated in Washington, DC. It opened to the public in 1889.
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History… February 22
1630 – Quadequine introduced popcorn to English colonists at their first Thanksgiving dinner.
1784 – “Empress of China”, a U.S. merchant ship, left New York City for the Far East.
1819 – Spain ceded Florida to the United States.
1855 – The U.S. Congress voted to appropriate $200,000 for continuance of the work on the Washington Monument. The next morning the resolution was tabled and it would be 21 years before the Congress would vote on funds again. Work was continued by the Know-Nothing Party in charge of the project.
1859 – U.S. President Buchanan approved the Act of February 22, 1859, which incorporated the Washington National Monument Society “for the purpose of completing the erection now in progress of a great National Monument to the memory of Washington at the seat of the Federal Government.”
1860 – Organized baseball’s first game was played in San Francisco, CA.
1865 – In the U.S., Tennessee adopted a new constitution that abolished slavery.
1879 – In Utica, NY, Frank W. Woolworth opened his first 5 and 10-cent store.
1885 – The Washington Monument was officially dedicated in Washington, DC. It opened to the public in 1889.
1892 – “Lady Windermere’s Fan”, by Oscar Wilde, was first performed.
1920 – The first dog race track to use an imitation rabbit opened in Emeryville, CA.
1923 – The first successful chinchilla farm opened in Los Angeles, CA. It was the first farm of its kind in the U.S.
1924 – U.S. President Calvin Coolidge delivered the first presidential radio broadcast from the White House.
1954 – ABC radio’s popular “Breakfast Club” program was simulcast on TV for the first time.
1969 – Barbara Jo Rubin became the first woman to win a U.S. thoroughbred horse race.
1973 – The U.S. and Communist China agreed to establish liaison offices.
1984 – The U.S. Census Bureau statistics showed that the state of Alaska was the fastest growing state of the decade with an increase in population of 19.2 percent.
1994 – The U.S. Justice Department charged Aldrich Ames and his wife with selling national secrets to the Soviet Union. Ames was later convicted to life in prison. Ames’ wife received a 5-year prison term.
1997 – Scottish scientist Ian Wilmut and colleagues announced that an adult sheep had been successfully cloned. Dolly was actually born on July 5, 1996. Dolly was the first mammal to have been successfully cloned from an adult cell.
2002 – In the Philippines, An MH-47E Chinook helicopter crashed into the ocean. All 10 men aboard were killed.
2010 – A copy of “Action Comics #1” sold at auction for $1 million. The comic featured the introduction of Superman.
2010 – Walmart announced it was acquiring the video streaming company Vudu, Inc.
on-this-day.com
Be a Seed for Change 
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