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North Korea Captures the USS Pueblo
Photo credit: U.S. Navy
North Korea captured the USS Pueblo, there were 82 surviving crew members. -
North Vietnam launches the Tet Offensive against the United States and South Vietnam
Photo credit : Tommy Japan In many ways, the bloody Tet Offensive signified the beginning of the end of U.S. involvement
in the Vietnam War.
The coordinated attack by 85,000 Viet Cong and North Vietnamese targeted 36 major cities and
towns in South Vietnam. It caught U.S.-led forces by surprise.
Named after the Vietnamese Lunar New Year, Tet was a holiday during which the North and
South had previously observed an informal truce. -
Martin Luther King Jr. assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee
Photo Credit: Wikipedia The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was standing on the second floor balcony of room 306 at the
Lorraine Motel when he was struck by a bullet at 6:01 p.m.
The 39-year-old civil rights leader was rushed to nearby St. Joseph's Hospital but never regained
consciousness. He was pronounced dead at 7:05 p.m.
King's fellow civil rights pioneers made public pleas for a nonviolent response to honor his
memory. But riots broke out in more than 100 cities across the nation. -
James Earl Ray was captured at heathrow airport with connection to the assassination
Photo credit Wikipedia Then he pleaded guilty to avoid the possibility of a death sentence. Later Ray tried to withdraw
his guilty plea and obtain a new trial. He died in prison in 1998.
On the night King was assassinated, Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy
arrived in Indianapolis on a campaign stop. Upon hearing the news, Kennedy informed a crowd
of listeners about King's death. -
Robert F. Kennedy Assassinated
Photo credit: wikipedia Just two months later, Kennedy himself was gunned down by an assassin at the Ambassador
Hotel in Los Angeles. -
Boeing introduces first 747 "Jumbo Jet"
Photo credit Wikipedia
When demand for air travel reached sky-high levels in the 1960s, the world's then-largest
passenger aircraft -- the Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet -- was a game changer. The ability to carry far
more passengers than previous airliners suddenly made globetrotting a feasible option for
would-be wanderers who previously thought they would never afford such exotic sojourns. -
Athletes take a stand at Olympics
During the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, two black athletes staged a silent
demonstration against racial discrimination in the United States.
Photo Credit Wikipedia For the simple defiant act of raising their fists during the National Anthem, the International
Olympic Committee condemned American medalists Tommie Smith and John Carlos. -
Both Medelists were expelled from Team USA
Photo Credit Wikipedia Two days later, Smith and Carlos were expelled from Team USA. When they returned home,
they were hailed as heroes by members of the African-American community. -
Star Trek Airs first interracial kiss
Photo Credit Wikipedia In 1968 "Star Trek" actors Nichelle Nichols and William Shatner performed the first interracial
kiss on American TV -
Apollo is the first manned spacecraft to orbit the moon
On Christmas Eve, three astronauts circled the moon 10 times. Jim Lovell, Bill Anders and Frank
Borman became the first human beings to travel to the moon.
