On This Day In Black History...

1868 ~ 14th Amendment validates citizenship for African Americans

1872 ~ Elijah McCoy was issued patent #129,843 for improvements in steam engines lubricators. He had over 50 inventions and it is he for whom the popular phrase "The Real McCoy", meaning "the real thing", is coined

1889 ~ W. A. Martin received Patent for the forerunner of modern door lock

1962 ~ Jackie Robinson was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame

1967 ~ The largest race riot in the 20th century began in Detriot in the early morning of July 23. It lasted 5 days, spreading to other Michigan cities and was precipitated by a police decision to raid and arrest 83 patroms of an unlicensed, after-hours bar. The patrons were reportedly celebrating the safe return of a Vietnam veteran. Mayhem erupted. Republican presidential hopeful, Gov George Romney, sent in the Michigan National Guard and President Lyndon B. Johnson sent in the US Army to help end the disturbance. The end result however was 5 days of rioting; 43 dead (33 Black, 10 White), 467 injured, 231 incidents reported each hour, 7,231 arrested, 388 families rendered homeless, 483 fires set and more than 2,500 buildings destroyed at estimagted property values between $40 and $80 million. Although the riot ended within 48 hours of their deployment, it was widely believed that the deployment of mostly White National Guard troops into the majority Black inner city incited more violence. Most of the Army troops were Black and were met with less resistance. The chaos received international attention. National news media covered the riot on live television, extensive newspaper reporting, and feature stories in Time and Life magazines. The Detroit Free Press won a Pulitzer Prize for its coverage.

1968 ~ A race riot known as the "Glenville Shootout" began in Cleveland on the night of July 23, lasting 5 days and prompted by a shootout between a Black militant group led by Fred "Ahmed" Evans and the Cleveland police department. There were casualties on both sides; 7 dead (3 policemen, 3 suspects, 1 civilian) and 15 were wounded. Although property destruction and vandalism continued for 4 additional days, it is widely held that further deaths were prevented by Mayor Carl Stokes' insightful position that putting Blacks in charge of their own community would prevent further bloodshed. Immediately only Black police and Black community leaders were allowed in Glenville. Other police and the national guardsmen were stationed on the perimeter of the cordoned-off area until calm had mostly been restored. There was no more loss of life. Evans surrendered on the morning of day two of the disturbance. 63 businesses were damaged with total loss set at $2.6 million

Note: Mayor Stokes is noted for being the first African-American Mayor of a major United States city.