On August 19, 1791, the accomplished American mathematician and astronomer Benjamin Banneker pens a letter to then-Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson corresponds prolifically with luminaries from around the world, but Banneker is unique among them: the son of a free Black American woman and a formerly enslaved African man from Guinea, Banneker criticizes Jefferson’s hypocritical stance on slavery in respectful but unambiguous terms, using Jefferson’s own words to make his case for the abolition of slavery.
Banneker himself was born free in what is now Ellicott City, Maryland, and was encouraged in his studies of astronomy and mathematics by the Ellicotts, a Quaker family who owned a mill and much of the land in the area. Predicting a solar eclipse and constructing a functioning clock that struck on the hour were among his early achievements. His prowess caught the eye of Jefferson after Major Andrew Ellicott chose Banneker to assist him in surveying the original boundaries of what would become the District of Columbia. Banneker also compiled several ephemerides (a type of astronomical chart) and almanacs.
On August 19, 1791, the accomplished American mathematician and astronomer Benjamin Banneker pens a letter to then-Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson corresponds prolifically with luminaries from around the world, but Banneker is unique among them: the son of a free Black American woman and a formerly enslaved African man from Guinea, Banneker criticizes Jefferson’s hypocritical stance on slavery in respectful but unambiguous terms, using Jefferson’s own words to make his case for the abolition of slavery.
Banneker himself was born free in what is now Ellicott City, Maryland, and was encouraged in his studies of astronomy and mathematics by the Ellicotts, a Quaker family who owned a mill and much of the land in the area. Predicting a solar eclipse and constructing a functioning clock that struck on the hour were among his early achievements. His prowess caught the eye of Jefferson after Major Andrew Ellicott chose Banneker to assist him in surveying the original boundaries of what would become the District of Columbia. Banneker also compiled several ephemerides (a type of astronomical chart) and almanacs.
The Iranian military, with the support and financial assistance of the United States government, overthrows the government of Premier Mohammed Mosaddeq and reinstates the Shah of Iran. Iran remained a solid Cold War ally of the United States until a revolution ended the Shah’s rule in 1979. Mosaddeq came to…
The Beatles took America by storm during their famous first visit, wowing the millions who watched them during their historic television appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show in February 1964. But after the first great rush of stateside Beatlemania, the Beatles promptly returned to Europe, leaving their American fans to…
On August 19, 1919, in a break with conventional practice, U.S. President Woodrow Wilson appears personally before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to argue in favor of its ratification of the Versailles Treaty, the peace settlement that ended the First World War. The previous July 8, Wilson had returned from Paris,…
1919 – Afghanistan gained independence from Britain.
1934 – Adolf Hitler was approved for sole executive power in Germany as Fuehrer.
1856 – Gail Borden received a patent for his process of condensing milk by vacuum.
1960 – Francis Gary Powers, an American U-2 pilot, was convicted of espionage in Moscow.
1974 – During an anti-American protest in Nicosia, Cyprus, U.S. Ambassador Rodger P. Davies was fatally wounded by a bullet while in the American embassy.
1824 Freed American slaves establish Liberia on the West African coast through the American Colonization Society (ACS)
1827 Race riots in Cincinnati, Ohio, are spurred by the city’s threat to enforce restrictive residency requirements on Black residents; over 1,000 people (more than half of the Black population) leave, many bound for Canada
1843 National Black Convention meets in Buffalo, New York
1948 Alger Hiss denies ever being a Communist agent
1851 Second US National Women’s Rights Convention convenes in Brinley Hall, Worcester, Massachusetts
1867 The Representation of the People Act (1867) extends suffrage in the UK
1876US law removes Native Americans from Black Hills after discovering gold
1934 US ends occupation of Haiti after 19 years, which started after the 1915 assassination of Haiti’s president
1945A riot ensues in San Francisco as the city celebrates the end of WWII
1964 Race riot in Dixmoor, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago
1975 Indian action-adventure film “Sholay,” directed by Ramesh Sippy and starring Dharmendra and Amitabh Bachchan, is released as the highest-grossing Indian film ever
1978 US House of Representatives approves (233-169) a 39-month extension for ERA
1988 New York City begins $70 million program to rebuild 900 Bronx apartments ~ The 1988 Bronx apartment rebuild was a significant, well‑publicized effort to address housing shortages and decay. While it did provide new units, the program’s effectiveness and fairness have been questioned in hindsight — especially regarding whether funds were fully and equitably used to benefit residents. Without specific audit evidence from that year, the perception of “short‑changing” residents is plausible, but it reflects a pattern of challenges in 1980s urban housing policy rather than an isolated failure.
Trademark Fight Escalates As Small, Local Coffee Company Battles Global Giant Over Right To Use Its Brand
SEATTLE (July 9, 2026) – Today, Seattle Strong Coffee Co. announced the relaunch of its GoFundMe campaign to help fund its ongoing legal battle against Nestlé in response to escalations with a second case against Seattle Strong’s logo. The recent filing expands the scope of the trademark dispute beyond the name to target the whole brand. The local cold brew company is doubling down on its commitment to fight for its Seattle-grown identity and the business it has been building since 2017. After extended proceedings, settlement negotiations and mounting legal costs, the dispute remains unresolved, prompting Seattle Strong to once again turn to the community that has supported its business from the beginning.
The dispute began when Nestlé, which acquired Seattle’s Best Coffee in 2022, challenged Seattle Strong’s federally registered trademark in April 2025, alleging the company’s name infringes on its SBC trademark rights. In March 2026, Nestlé escalated the dispute by filing a second case challenging Seattle Strong’s logo, broadening the dispute beyond the company’s name to its overall brand. Despite more than a year of negotiations, the parties have not reached a resolution.
Source: seattlestrongcoffee.com for the complete article
Over the last few years, I have posted articles about the 3rd, 4th, and media accounts of what were called the Watts Riots … and while there are several sides to this event … the accounts given all seem to be missing something, or some puzzle pieces were left out. I am not saying intentionally, but gotta say some accounts don’t seem to match the original reasons the riots started. I was about 12, didn’t live there, and the history books didn’t go there, let alone give out all the information. I admit to looking at these accounts over the years and deleting and reposting what sounded like the truth, but never that comfortable with the info …
It’s 2026, and deciding to delete the articles was the best thing ever. I will post what is labeled as … I will go and research this to make sure it’s accurate … etc.
Martin Luther King Jr. and Lyndon Johnson assessment of situation
In a taped White House phone conversation on August 20, 1965, Martin Luther King Jr. called U.S. President Lyndon Johnson to discuss the outcome of his meetings with LAPD chief William Parker and mayor Sam Yorty. King described Parker as a “very rude man,” while also not seeing “a willingness on the part of the mayor to grant just a few concessions to make to bring about a new sense of hope…,” but also noted that the people of the Watts area were in fear of a return by the “National Guard.” King noted how he was fearful of “retaliation in the white community” should the local National Guard return, noting how already “people have brought up guns, and Chief Parker went on television the other day. They need to do anti-riot crew and all that.” King recommended fighting poverty was a good solution in order to prevent a “race war,” and President Johnson accepted King’s recommendation to have Lee C. White come to the White House. Johnson also noted to King that despite publicly advocating for people to obey the law, he also believed that “there’s no use giving lectures on the law as long as you got rats eating on people’s kid – children and unemployed, and no roof over their head, and no job to go to, and may with a dope needle on one side a cancer on the other.”[51]
source: wiki
I used the internet, and a search for the specific conversation between Johnson and MLK jr the MillerCenter.org site popped up. This site is not just for Presidential information; it has conversations in both audio and transcription form! What better source than this!
Below is the conversation between Johnson and King jr.
In 1965, Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. reported on his visit to Los Angeles following the uprising in the Watts section of the city. King informed President Johnson that the city’s mayor and police chief seemed deeply unresponsive to the problems in the area, and he urged an intensification of the administration’s anti-poverty efforts.
President Johnson: [speaking over King] But I wanted you to know I’d said that. Pardon me for interrupting. Go ahead. Martin Luther King Jr.: That’s all right. But in my meeting with Police Chief [William H.] Parker and Mr. [Samuel W. “Sam”] Yorty—Mayor Yorty—I just felt that they are absolutely insensitive to the problem and to the needs, to really cure the situation. Now, Mr. Parker is a very rude man—we just couldn’t get anywhere with him—but I just don’t see a willingness even on the part of the mayor to grant just a few concessions to make—to bring about a new sense of hope and [unclear]. Now, what is frightening about it is that you hear all of these tones of violence. The people out there in the Watts area, they’d assumed the National Guard indeed were going back in. The minute that happens there will be retaliation in the White community this time. Last time there was not, which was wonderful. But the people have bought up guns, and Chief Parker went on television the other day, they need to do an anti-riot crew, and all of that. So that I’m fearful that if something isn’t done to give a new sense of hope to the people in that area— and they are poverty-stricken—that a full-scale race war can develop here. And I’m concerned about it, naturally, because I know that violence—a riot at the end of the day wouldn’t—doesn’t help. President Johnson: That’s right. Now, what should we do about it? What’s your recommendation? King: Well, the problem is I think that poverty—if they could get, in the next few days, this poverty program going in Los Angeles [California], I believe that it would help a great deal. President Johnson: I’ll get him over here in the morning. We’ll get at it. Where are you going to be?
King: I’ll be in Atlanta [Georgia] in the morning. President Johnson: All right. We’ll call you back. Lee [C. White] will call you, or I’ll call you if I have time, and we’ll explore it. Is that the net of what you’re recommending? King: That’s right. [President Johnson acknowledges.] I think this would be greatly—this would help greatly. President Johnson: Well, we were ahead of it, and we got to keep ahead of it, and we’re not now unless we do. But they never publicized it any, and you—you have—you’re on television, and you ought to make them. Hell, tell them to read it, write and get it, [King acknowledges] and let’s get busy. And let’s get into this housing. Let’s get into this unemployment. Let’s get into this health. Let’s get into this Social Security situation. Let’s get into this education. Let’s get into—I said this morning, “I spent the biggest part of my life for the last four years on civil rights bills, but it doesn’t—all of it comes to naught if you have a situation like war in the world or a situation in Los Angeles.” King: Yes. President Johnson: And I said, “A man’s got no more right to destroy property with a Molotov cocktail in Los Angeles than the Ku Klux Klan has to go out and destroy a life. And what we’ve got to do is all obey the law. But there’s no use giving lectures on the law as long as you got rats eating on people’s kid—children, and unemployed, and no roof over their head, and no job to go to, and maybe with a dope needle in one side, and a cancer in the other.”
King: Yeah, that’s it.
CITATION: “Lyndon B. Johnson and Martin Luther King Jr. on 20 August 1965,” Conversation
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