Today in History

July 27, 2004 – Barack Obama delivered the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in Boston.

 A candidate for the Illinois senate then, that speech brought him national recognition.  In a politically polarized America, he urged national unity. “There’s not a liberal America and a conservative America—there’s the United States of America,” said Obama. “We worship an awesome God in the blue states, and we don’t like federal agents poking around in our libraries in the red states. We coach Little League in the blue states, and yes, we’ve got some gay friends in the red states.”

July 27, 1962 – Martin Luther King, Jr., is arrested and jailed in Albany, Georgia.  At a city hall prayer vigil, police handcuffed the civil rights leader on charges of disorderly conduct, failure to obey a police officer and obstructing the sidewalk.  He and other civil rights activists were leading a protest against segregation.