A Mouthful of History

10/05/2022

John Brown was born. The man needs no introduction.

15/04/2022

On This Day in 1889, labor leader, socialist, & civil rights pioneer A. Philip Randolph was born. Randolph came to prominence when he created & led the predominantly black Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters union in the 1920s, which made him a leader in the emerging civil rights movement. He & others helped form the idea of a march on Washington in the 1940s, which would lead to the 1963 march that is famous is US history.

20/03/2022

On This Day in 2003, the United States (along with the UK, Australia, & Poland) launched an invasion of Iraq on the pretext that it was manufacturing chemical weapons. No substantial evidence was ever found. Death estimates range from 400,000 to as much as a million, with around 185,000-208,000 of those being civilians.

18/03/2022

On This Day in 1938, Mexican President Lázaro Cárdenas declared that all oil found in Mexico belonged to Mexicans & nationalized the oil industry, creating Pemex. The move proved incredibly popular at home, since foreingn oil companies polluted the areas they set up shop while only paying scraps to the Mexicans who worked for them. The US, British, & Dutch boycotted Mexico for the move at first, but then backed off to garner goodwill during WW2.

15/03/2022

44 BC – The assassination of Julius Caesar takes place. The Idea of March as they say.

11/03/2022

On This Day in 2006, Michelle Bachelet of the Socialist Party of Chile was sworn in as Chile's first female president. She got a lot done in her 1st term (2006-2010) & left office with high approval ratings, with particular credit being given for her handling of the 2008 Great Recession when it reached Chile. Her 2nd term (2014-2018) saw many scandals, however, which lowered her popularity. While she wasn't implicated in any scandals herself, some of the people around her were.

09/03/2022

1917 – International Women's Day protests in Petrograd mark the beginning of the February Revolution according to the Julian calendar.

04/03/2022

On This Day in 1933, Frances Perkins became the labor secretary of FDR & the first ever female cabinet member of a US president. She was one of the most important players in the New Deal reform agenda, doing everything she could to help get progressive legislation passed. She also used her position to stop the deportation of immigrant workers whenever she could.

03/03/2022

On This Day in 1972, NASA sent out the Pioneer 10 space probe. It began its mission around Jupiter to photograph the planet & surrounding area, then continued on its mission to become the first space probe to leave the solar system. It succeeded.

01/03/2022

509 BC – Publius Valerius Publicola celebrates the first triumph of the Roman Republic after his victory over the deposed king Lucius Tarquinius Superbus at the Battle of Silva Arsia. This is generally noted as the end of the line of Roman Kings and the creation of the Republic.

27/02/2022

On This Day in 1902, author John Steinbeck was born in Salinas, CA. Steinbeck became one of the most prolific American authors of all time, known for his wit, realism, and love for his characters. Many consider his novel The Grapes of Wrath one of the best novels of all time.

23/02/2022

On This Day in 1903, after the US asserted control over Cuba after the Spanish-American War instead of giving Cuba its freedom, Cuba "leased" Guantánamo Bay to the United States. The US used it as a naval base, but since 2002 has also used it as a military prison that is notorious for violating international law.

18/02/2022

On This Day in 1931, renowned author Toni Morrison was born. One of the greatest novelists of all time, she wrote eleven novels as well as several other works of different genres. Her two novels "Beloved" and "The Bluest Eye" are her best-known works.

12/02/2022

On This Day in 1937, the Flint sit-down strike at the GM plant in Flint, Michigan ended with a pay increase for workers & GM recognizing the United Auto Workers (UAW) union. In the next year, UAW membership grew from 30,000 to 500,000 members.

09/02/2022

On This Day in 1940, legendary heavyweight boxer Joe "The Brown Bomber" Louis defeated challenger Arturo Godoy in a rematch. In their previous match Godoy had given Louis his toughest title defense up to that point, which Louis won by split decision. In this rematch Louis won by TKO.

If you're interested in learning more about Joe Louis and other boxers who played an important yet underlooked role in history, check out one of the two episodes we did about boxing! We're on every major podcast platform. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a-fistful-of-history/id1503921575?i=1000499675837

07/02/2022

1898 – Dreyfus affair: Émile Zola is brought to trial for libel for publishing J'Accuse… He accused President Felix Faure's government of antisemitism (which there was no doubt) over the unlawful jailing of Officer Alfred Dreyfus citing a lack of credible evidence. He was found guilty but fled to England to avoid imprisonment. He returned to France in 1899.

05/02/2022

In case you missed it! Our NEW EPISODE dropped yesterday! Check it out on many (and practically all) podcast platforms!

05/02/2022

Part 2 of our series on Guatemala is out now on all platforms! Leave us a review on Apple Podcasts and make sure to rate it on Spotify! Check it out!

‎Show A Mouthful of History, Ep What's Coup Got To Do With It? - Feb 4, 2022

04/02/2022

Check out the NEW EPISODE now streaming on all podcast platforms!!!

03/02/2022

The winner gets Baja Blast, or something better ;)

New Episode drops TOMORROW @ Noon!! Check it out on your favorite podcast platform!!

02/02/2022

On This Day in 1987, after the People Power Revolution defeated the 20-year dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos the year before & held democratic elections, the Philippines enacted a new constitution. This new constitution helped further cement democracy in the new Philippine government.

01/02/2022

1327 – The teenaged Edward III is crowned King of England, but the country is ruled by his mother Queen Isabella and her lover Roger Mortimer.

01/02/2022

We are back!!!!!

Part 2 focusing on the coup in Guatemala drops FRIDAY @ NOON!! Or Thursday @ Noon for our Patrons on Patreon. Check us out on any (and practically all) podcast platforms!!

31/01/2022

On This Day in 1997, one of the greatest video games of all time was release for the PlayStation 1. Final Fantasy VII remains one of the most popular titles from Square Enix twenty five years later.

30/01/2022

On This Day in 1956, Martin Luther King Jr's house was bombed in retaliation for his prominent role in the Montgomery bus boycott that began in Dec 1955. Fortunately no one was hurt, but it showed the depth of racist anger against MLK's peaceful message of unity.