Diversity Calendar - October, 2004

National Disability Employment Awareness Month. By presidential proclamation in 1988, October has been designated to enhance public awareness of those with disabilities and encourage their full integration into the work force.

Ronald H. Brown (1941–1996) : African American. Lawyer, civil rights activist, politician. Appointed by President Clinton on January 21, 1993, Ron Brown became the first African American to hold the office of secretary of commerce. He was born in Washington, D.C., and later graduated from Middlebury College in Vermont. After serving four years in the army in both Germany and Korea, he earned a law degree from St. John's University. He served as chief counsel for the Senate Judiciary Committee under the chairmanship of Senator Edward M. Kennedy, and became a leader in the civil rights movement as deputy executive director, general counsel, and vice president for Washington operations for the National Urban League. In 1988, he became chairman of the Democratic Party. He died in a plane crash while on a trade mission to Bosnia and Croatia.

Independence Day : Nigeria. This national holiday commemorates the nation's achieving independence from Britain in 1960.

National Day : People's Republic of China, Hong Kong, Nigeria. This marks the anniversary of the victory of the Communist Party led by Mao Zedong over the Nationalist forces led by Chiang Kai-shek and the declaration of the People's Republic of China in 1949. This holiday is celebrated on October 1 and October 2.

Nat Turner (1800–1831) : African American. Leader of a slave revolt. In August 1831 Turner led a bloody uprising in Southampton County, Virginia, in which 57 whites were killed. Nearly 100 Blacks died in the manhunt that led to his capture. Turner was eventually tried and hanged.

Mahatma Gandhi (1869–1948) : India. Political leader. This is a national holiday in India honoring Gandhi's leadership of the Indian resistance to British rule that culminated in the establishment of an independent Indian state in 1947. Honored all over the world as one of the moral heroes and most influential figures of the century, Gandhi articulated and lived a doctrine of nonviolence, insisting that those who struggle for justice must respect the sanctity of life. This is the day of his birth.

John Ross (1790–1866) : American Indian (Cherokee).Political leader. Ross served as chief of the Cherokee nation from 1827, when the tribe established a constitutional government, to his death. After trying unsuccessfully to prevent the forced removal of his people from their lands in the Southeast, he led the Cherokee on their journey over the "Trail of Tears" to Oklahoma and devoted himself to maintaining the unity of the resettled people.

German Unity Day : Germany. After World War II, Germany was divided between West Germany, under a democratic government, and East Germany, under a communist government. With the collapse of the Berlin Wall in November 1989, the final reunification of Germany under a democratic government took place on this day in 1990.

National Foundation Day (Kaech'on-jol) : Korea. This commemorates the founding of the first Korean state in 2333 B.C.E. by Tan'gun.

George I. Sánchez (1906–1972) : Mexican American. Educator and writer. Sánchez was an authority on Latin American education and on the educational and social needs of Mexican Americans. He wrote or edited hundreds of articles and many books, directed research projects, and advised governments, universities, and foundations. He was one of the architects of bilingual and bicultural education programs and an advocate of increased political and economic opportunities for Mexican Americans.

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Tecumseh (1768?–1813) : American Indian (Shawnee). Political and military leader. Tecumseh led the resistance to the advance of white settlement in the Northwest Territories in the last years of the eighteenth century, refusing to sign a treaty that surrendered most of Ohio to the United States. He organized the northwestern tribes into a confederation pledged to make no further land concessions and allied himself with the British in the War of 1812. He was killed in battle on this date.

Republic Day : Portugal. This holiday celebrates the establishment of the Republic of Portugal in 1834.

Surrender of Chief Joseph (1877) : American Indian. When the U.S. government ordered the Nez Percé Indians to move from their ancestral lands in the Northwest to a reservation, Chief Joseph led his people on a 1,321-mile trek northward, hoping to resettle in Canada. After fending off army attacks and suffering terrible losses to cold and sickness, Chief Joseph surrendered on this date with a moving speech, concluding "I will fight no more forever."

Henri Christophe (1767–1820) : Haitian. Military and political leader. One of Toussaint-Louverture's lieutenants in the war for Haitian independence, Christophe set up an independent kingdom in the North and later joined in the effort to defeat the French and drive them permanently from the island. Thwarted in his ambition to lead the new nation, which he thought needed the strong hand of a despot, he withdrew again to the North and from 1811 ruled his own kingdom as Henri I. After a reign of general prosperity, he suffered a stroke in 1820, and revolts broke out. When he was unable to restore civil order, he shot himself, and his kingdom soon became part of the Republic of Haiti.

Fannie Lou Hamer (1917–1977) : African American. Civil rights leader. The daughter of sharecropper parents in the Mississippi Delta, Fannie Lou Hamer became one of the most courageous and inspiring leaders of the civil rights movement. She spent her early life in conditions shaped by desperate poverty and the harshest forms of racial discrimination. In 1962 she became involved in the civil rights movement as one of the first African Americans to register to vote and then as an organizer. Frequently arrested and beaten, she continued her work and inspired followers with her courage, her faith, and her persistence. She was a major force in the successful effort to integrate the Democratic Party in Mississippi. She also helped to establish agricultural cooperatives, build low-income housing, and bring industry to poor rural areas.

Sh'mini Atzeret : Jewish. (See entry for Sukkoth on September 30.) (m)

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Battle of Angamos : Peru. Public holiday.

Simchat Torah : Jewish. (See entry for Sukkoth on September 30.) (m)

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Mary Shadd Cary (1823–1893) : African American. Journalist and antislavery advocate. Mary Shadd Cary was born to free Black parents in Delaware. After the passage of the Fugitive Slave Act in 1850, she went to Canada and started a newspaper called The Provincial Freeman, the first antislavery newspaper in western Canada.

Han'gul Day : Korea. This commemorates the creation of the alphabet of 29 phonetic symbols called han'gul by King Sejong between 1443 and 1446. Korean is one of the Ural-Altaic family of languages.

Independence Day : Uganda. This holiday commemorates the nation's achieving independence from Britain in 1962.

Lin Yutang (1895–1976) : Chinese. Writer and teacher. After attending missionary schools and college in China, Lin Yutang earned advanced degrees at Harvard and the University of Leipzig. He returned to China and began a career in university teaching and administration. In 1930 he came to the United States, where he lived for thirty years, publishing books on Chinese culture and on his view of America. He retired to Hong Kong.

Elijah Muhammad (born Elijah Poole) (1897–1975) : African American. Religious leader. Elijah Muhammad was the leader of the Nation of Islam (Black Muslims) in the United States from 1934 until his death. His advocacy of hard work, a puritanical moral code, and pride and solidarity among Black people attracted a large following for his movement.

Double Tenth Day (Shuang-shih) : Republic of China (Taiwan). This national holiday commemorates the outbreak on October 10, 1911, of the revolution led by Sun Yat-sen against the Ch'ing Dynasty (Manchu), which led to the founding of the Republic of China on January 1, 1912.

Grito de Yara (greeto-de-yarah) (1868) : Cuba. The Revolt of Yara began Cuba's struggle for independence from Spain on this day, when Nationalist leaders proclaimed the island a republic and set up a provisional government. When the ensuing ten years of warfare ended with the reestablishment of Spanish rule, many Nationalists left the island to continue working for the freedom of their homeland. Cuba finally achieved its independence in 1898. (See entry for January 28.)

Robert Nathaniel Dett (1882–1943) : African American. Composer and educator. Dett was the first American to incorporate Negro folk tunes into classical compositions, chiefly piano works and choral pieces. He also taught music and directed choral groups at several colleges, notably at Hampton Institute, where he worked from 1913 to 1932.

Health Sports Day (Taiiku No Hi) : Japan. This is a day to promote physical health and also to commemorate the Olympic Games held in Tokyo, Japan, in 1964.

National Coming Out Day/March on Washington (1987) : Gay/Lesbian. On October 11, the largest gay and lesbian gathering of its time—some estimate as many as 200,000–600,000 people—took place to protest anti-gay discrimination and demand a stronger federal government response to the AIDS crisis.

Thanksgiving Day : Canada. This is observed as a harvest festival and an occasion for families to get together for visiting and traditional foods. (m)

Columbus Day observed : United States. This is the day set aside for observing the anniversary of the landing of Christopher Columbus in the New World. Columbus Day is a national holiday that has come to be especially important to Italian Americans. At annual Italian American get-togethers, there are speeches by celebrities, and citizens of Italian heritage are honored for their rich contributions to community life. (m)

Charles Gordone (1925–1995) : African American. Playwright. In 1970, Charles Gordone became the first African American playwright to win the Pulitzer Prize. The play for which he won the prize, No Place to Be Somebody, opened in 1969 and became an immediate success. Gordone challenged the idea of a distinct "black theater," seeking instead a multiracial American theater. Like Ralph Ellison, whose first published novel also won outstanding critical acclaim, Gordone never published a second play.

Día de la Raza (deeah-delah-rahzah) (Columbus Day) : Latin American countries. This day commemorates the discovery of the Americas by Christopher Columbus and the common Spanish and Indian heritage of Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, and Venezuela.

Liberation from France : Laos. This day commemorates Laos' liberation from its protectorate status with France and establishment of a monarchy in 1954.

National Day : Spain. This holiday commemorates the discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus and Spain's gaining of a colonial empire.

Arna Bontemps (1902–1973) : African American. Writer and anthologist. Bontemps won acclaim for his poems, stories, novels, nonfiction writings, and his works of children's literature. He also edited anthologies of African American stories and poems and served as librarian at Fisk University from 1943 to 1965.

[William] Allison Davis (1902–1983) : African American. Anthropologist and educator. After attending Williams College and receiving an M.A. in anthropology from Harvard University, Allison Davis taught at Dillard University and later at the University of Chicago where he received a Ph.D. in education in 1942. In 1948, he became one of the first African Americans to receive tenure at a non-historically Black academic institution. His work in psychology and education includes the development of the Davis-Ellis intelligence test and several studies on social and class influences on the education of children. When he died in 1983, he was the John Dewey Distinguished Professor at the University of Chicago. In 1994, the United States Postal Service honored Dr. Allison Davis with a postage stamp bearing his picture.

Frank Yankovic (1915–1998) : Slovenian American. Polka musician. Known as the Polka King since 1948, Yankovic became the premier figure in the Slovenian polka style. Beginning his playing on local Slovenian radio programs in Cleveland, he formed the Slovenian Folk Orchestra. After serving in World War II, he recorded Just Because, the first polka record to sell more than a million copies. In 1986, Yankovic won a Grammy Award when polka first became a Grammy category. He continued to record and perform until shortly before his death. October 14 is the anniversary of his death.

John L. Sullivan (1858–1918) : Irish American. Prizefighter. Sullivan won the world heavyweight championship in 1882.

Ramadan (rahm-ah-dahm) (The Month of Fasting) : Islam (First day of month-long fasting). This begins the first day of the Islamic month of Ramadan, the holiest month of the Muslim year. The festival of Laylat al-Qadr occurs during Ramadan and commemorates the revelation of the Qur'an (the holy book of scriptures) to the Prophet Muhammad. During this month, no water or food may be taken from sunrise to sunset by Muslims who have reached puberty. Observant Muslims pray, read the Qur'an, and worship at home or at a mosque. At sunset, the daily fast is often broken by taking a sip of water and a bite into a sweet fruit, usually a date. (m)

Sarah Winnemucca Hopkins (1844–1887) : American Indian (Northern Piute). Writer and lecturer. While working as an interpreter, Sarah Winnemucca Hopkins observed the injustices perpetrated against her people by federal officials. Her book Life among the Piutes: Their Wrongs and Claims (1883) blended autobiography, history, and ethnographic description with advocacy of the Piute claim to autonomy and to ownership of their homelands. She died on this date.

Mahalia Jackson (1911–1972) : African American. Gospel singer. Mahalia Jackson's rich contralto voice and the powerful spirituality that she conveyed won her an international following and greatly increased the audience for gospel music.

Henry Lewis (1932–1996) : African American. Musician and conductor. Henry Lewis was the first Black conductor and music director of a major American orchestra, and the first Black to conduct the New York City Metropolitan Opera.

Eugene O'Neill (1888–1953) : Irish American. Playwright. O'Neill expanded the range of American drama with his tragedies focusing on ordinary people and his expressionistic experimental plays.

John Brown's raid at Harper's Ferry (1859) : African American. A passionate foe of slavery, Brown led a band of 21 men in an attack on a federal armory at Harper's Ferry, West Virginia, on this date. After seizing the armory and the bridges leading to it, he was forced to surrender, tried for treason, and hanged. Brown, a white man, was hailed by abolitionists as a martyr.

Jean Jacques Dessalines (c. 1758–1806) : Haitian. Revolutionary leader. Dessalines, born a slave, joined the revolt against French rule led by François Dominique Toussaint-Louverture. After Toussaint-Louverture's capture in 1802, Dessalines, along with Henri Christophe, led the successful effort to defeat the French army of Napoleon I. He declared independence from France on January 1, 1804, gave the land the name Haiti (Indian for "hills"), and proclaimed himself Emperor Jacques I. He ruled Haiti as the first independent nation in Latin America from 1804 to 1806. This is the day of his death.

Birthday of the Bab (1819–1850) : Baha'i. The Bab (which means "the Gate") is honored by the Baha'is as the one who announced that the messenger of God would soon appear. He was the forerunner of Baha'u'llah, the prophet-founder of the Baha'i faith. On this day Baha'is throughout the world suspend work and come together for prayer and festivities.

Dassehra (da-sheerah) (Durga Puja): Hindu. Dassehra, which means “the tenth day,” is celebrated at the culmination of a ten-day festival, following the “nine nights” festival, Navaratri. Celebrated with feasting and rejoicing, it commemorates Rama’s victory over Ravana and honors the goddess Durga. (m)

Keep in mind that Hindus neither eat meat nor drink alcoholic beverages. Appropriate greetings for all Hindu holidays include “God bless you with prosperity and happiness” or “I wish you happiness and prosperity.”

Chulalongkorn Day : Thailand. This day commemorates the death in 1910 of King Chulalongkorn the Great, who abolished slavery in Thailand.

Republic Day : Hungary. This day marks the beginning of the revolt of Hungarians against Communist rule in 1956.

United Nations Day : United Nations. This day commemorates the founding of the United Nations in 1945.

Miriam Kressyn (1912–1996) : Jewish American. Yiddish actress. Born in Bialystok, Poland, Kressyn came to the United States in 1925 and, along with her husband, Seymour Rechtzeit, was a primary force in the survival of Yiddish theater in the United States. Together, they were known as the romantic idols of Yiddish musicals. Considered by many to be the "First Lady of the Yiddish Theater," Ms. Kressyn taught Yiddish theater at Queens College in New York and for 40 years she and her husband broadcast in Yiddish on WEVD in New York City. This is the day of her death.

National Day : Austria. This commemorates Austria's regaining full sovereignty in 1955 after its occupation by the United States and the Soviet Union at the end of World War II.

So Jae-P'il (Philip Jaisohn) (1866–1951) : Korean American. Physician and activist. After participating in a failed political movement in opposition to Korea's Japanese rulers, So Jae-P'il fled to the United States, where he eventually earned a medical degree. He returned to his country and founded a newspaper, The Independent, but was asked to leave again. So Jae-P'il eventually settled permanently in the United States, where he practiced medicine and continued to be active in the Korean independence movement. He was able to return to his country for a visit after it was liberated from Japanese rule in 1945.

Ochi Day : Greece. This day commemorates the resistance of the Greeks during World War II to the Italian army's invasion in 1940.

Republic Day : Turkey. After World War I and the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, the Treaty of Sèvres established the current boundaries of Turkey and declared Turkey a republic. Kemal Atatürk became its first president, ruling until 1938. Atatürk westernized and secularized Turkey, creating the basis for a modern nation state.

Francisco Madero (1873–1913) : Mexican. Revolutionary leader and statesman. Madero called for an uprising in 1911 to depose the dictator Porfirio Diaz and establish democracy in Mexico. After Diaz was driven from office, Madero became Mexico's president, serving from 1911 until his deposition and death at the hands of a rival faction in the revolutionary movement.

Halloween : United States. This festival, which takes its name from All Hallows Eve (the eve of the feast of All Saints), originated among the Celts of Britain and Ireland, for whom October 31 was new year's eve. On this night it was believed that the souls of the dead revisited their earthly homes, and huge bonfires were set to frighten away evil spirits. With the rise of Christianity, the autumn festival came to be associated with All Saints Day. Secular Halloween customs reflect its pagan origins and were introduced to the United States by immigrants, especially the Irish, in the nineteenth century. Today the most widely observed Halloween custom is a benign version of "trick or treat," in which costumed children go from door to door collecting sweets or money for UNICEF.

Reformation Day : Protestant. This day commemorates the Protestant Reformation, the movement that led to the establishment of the Protestant denominations of Christianity. Reformation Day is the anniversary of the act that began the movement in 1517--Martin Luther's nailing of the manuscript of his 95 theses to the door of the palace church in Wittenberg, Germany. These statements denounced a number of practices then common in the Roman Catholic Church, including the selling of "indulgences," or documents granting the forgiveness of sins. This is a public holiday in Protestant parts of Germany.