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Rodeny King (LA Riots/Rodeny King Riots)
Rodney King was pulled over one day in LA. When police tried to pull him over her refused at first. Once he pulled over, he was taken out of his car and beaten by the officers and another recorded. This went to trial where the officer’s attorneys requested a location change and took the case out of LA. The officers were found not guilty for the attack. Riots then happened in LA as a justice movement for King.
Thomson, David. "Rodeny King." 19 Apr. 2024. Lecture. -
Time Square Renovations
In the 1990s major cities were being renovated. The most famous renovation was in Times Square New York City. Sex shops were closed down, and drug dealers were arrested. These actions were taken by the NYPD to "clean up" Times Square and renovate the idea of the city. New business were also introduced to the area leading people to feel safer in Times Square (Kruse and Zelizer, 233). -
Don't Ask Don't Tell
Don’t ask don’t tell was the policy the United States put in place for the military when it came to homosexual members of the military. The United States wanted to eliminate the harassment of these members, so they were told to not talk about their sexuality. This policy also eased the restrictions on this community’s service in the military.
Thomson, David. "DADT." 19 Apr. 2024. Lecture. -
OJ Simpson Trial
OJ Simpson, a former NFL player and actor who was accused of murdering is former wife and her boyfriend. He was arrested for these murders, and this became the biggest trial of the century. His lawyers claimed that he was being framed by racist officers for the murder and was found not guilty.
Sager, J. (2024, April 12). Revisiting the O.J. Simpson Murder Trial: The Shocking Details, Key Players and Verdict. People.com. https://people.com/revisiting-oj-simpson-trial-case-verdict-8576296 -
Oklahoma City Bombing
In April of 1995, Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols bombed the Alferd P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. A truck was filled with bombs, ripping a hole in the building killing 168 and injuring 680. The attack was motivated by anti-government beliefs. McVeigh was caught when he was pulled over for a broken taillight. They had noticed his name was on the credit card that rented the truck, and he was arrested.
Thomson, David. "Oklahoma City Bombing." 19 Apr. 2024. Lecture. -
Bill Clinton Scandal and Impeachment
Bill Cliton was accused of having an affair with a 21-year-old intern at the white house. He denied the affair in a press conference, but it was later revealed that he was lying. The woman he was having an affair with told her friend over the phone about the affair and the friend was secretly recording her. Clinton was then impeached with perjury for lying under oath.
Thomson, David. "Clinton Scandal and Impeachment." 19 Apr. 2024. Lecture. -
Columbine Shooting
On April 20, 1999 two students at Columbine High School carried out a schools shooting killing 12 students, one teacher, and then turned the guns on themselves. This shooting is referred to the beginning of what has become far to frequent, especially on school campuses. This event started to raise questions about gun control and school security.
Thomson, David. "Columbine Shooting." 19 Apr. 2024. Lecture. -
USA Patriot Act
The USA Patriot Act explained the ability for the government to conduct wiretaps that traced multiple phones without multiple subpoenas. This was to monitor emails, business records, to have more authority over undocumented immigrants and to make it harder to appeal detention and expand the working definition of terrorist (Kruse and Zelizer, 257). -
Partial Birth Abortion Ban
Bush had been working on creating the partial birth abortion ban. The idea behind the ban was to be a part of the long campaign of religious conservatives to roll back abortion rights. The next year Bush signed to Unborn Victims of Violence Act which stated that if a pregnant woman was murdered, then the fetus would be considered the second victim (Kruse and Zelizer, 272). -
Barack Obama Makes History
Barack Obama became the first African American President in the 2008 election. He was a democrat from Illinois who ran against republican John McCain. He served two presidential terms and during his time in office he was behind the killing of Osama bin Laden in 2011, man behind the 9/11 attacks.
H. E. (2020, October 30). Barack Obama Elected as American's First Black President. History.com. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/barack-obama-elected-as-americas-first-black-president