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Eyewitness to History
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Watergate
Five men were arrested for breaking into the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate Complex. They had money from a government account funding Nixon, and it was later revealed that Nixon had been tape-recording conversations. -
Saturday Night Massacre
President Nixon fired several members of his staff. This included Archibald Cox and the resignations of Elliot Richardson and Willian Ruckelshaus. -
Nixon Resigns
Following his near-impeachment, Richard Nixon resigns the Presidency to successor Gerald Ford. Ford later pardoned Nixon for his actions. -
Saigon Falls
Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, was taken by the People's Army of Vietnam and the National Liberation Front. This indicated the end of the Vietnam and the beginning of the reunification of Vietnam. -
Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter becomes the United States' 39th President. He later won the Nobel Peace Prize. -
AIDs
AIDs first surfaces, presenting as a "strange pneumonia." It was thought to infect only homosexual men. -
Challenger Explosion
The space shuttle, Challenger, broke apart less than two minutes into its flight. Seven were killed in the explosion. -
Chernobyl Crisis
Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine explodes, scattering radioactive waste in all directions. Workers try to clean up the spill before much is contaminated by it. -
Tiananmen Square
Large demonstrations protesting changes in government . Most of the protesting started immediately following the death of Hu Yaobang. -
Fall of the Berlin Walls
The wall separating West Germany from East Germany falls. This was a symbol of the end of the Cold War. -
Invasion of Kuwait
Saddam Hussein had said that he wouldn't invade Kuwait, but he does and it surprises everyone. -
Magic Johnson AIDs
Magic Johnson accounces his infection with HIV/AIDs. This disproves the theory that the disease was only common in homosexual men. -
Los Angeles Riots
Three white policemen beat a black man and left him in critical condition. This started riots. -
Oklahoma City Bombing
Early on this day, a bomb exploded outside the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. This attack by Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols, who were United States citizens, was considered to be the worst attack on the U.S. until 9/11. -
OJ Simpson Trial
OJ Simpson was a professional football player, football announcer, and actor. He was found guilty of the murders of Nicole Brown and Ronald Goldman.
