Apr. 12, 1967: Fifteen hundred march down the Ave. in Seattle's U-District in opposition to Vietnam War. 1989: Abbie Hoffman dies in Pennsylvania. Officially, a suicide, though those close to him maintain their doubts.

Apr. 13, 1570: Birth of Guy Fawkes; was instrumental in the Gunpowder Plot of 1605 to blow up the English Parliament and King James I, celebrated ever since for having had a good idea. 1919: Socialist, pacifist, and labor leader Eugene Debs imprisoned for opposing US entry into World War I. While in prison he received over one million votes for President in 1920.

Apr. 14, 1812: England: Luddite Sheffield food riot--mainly women and boys--seized potatoes and vegetables, and attacked militia arms store. 1939: John Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath is published.

Apr. 15, 1813: US troops seize the Spanish fort at Mobile, thereby invading and occupying the eastern half of West Florida. The western portion of the territory had already been annexed in 1810. 1912: Titanic sinks at 2:20 AM. 1967: First mass draft card burning as 400,000 march in New York City and 80,000 in San Francisco opposing Vietnam War.

Apr. 16, 1902: Philippines: Surrender of the last resistance to US occupation. 1973: US bombs Laos in a further extension of the Vietnam War.

Apr. 17, 1824: Slavery abolished in Central America. 1961: US uses covert mercenaries to invade Cuba in the abortive Bay of Pigs fiasco.

Apr. 18, 1792: Vancouver "discovers" Vancouver Island. 1906: Earthquake and subsequent fires destroy much of San Francisco.

Apr. 19, 1775: American Revolution begins with battles of Lexington and Concord, Mass. 1995: Bombing of Federal Building in Oklahoma City kills nearly 200. Bombing is initially blamed on Arab terrorists; later found to be the work of far-right American "patriots" striking back to commemorate Waco.

Apr. 20, 1953: Members of Communist Party USA forced to register as "foreign agents." 2002: More than 75,000 march in Washington to protest War on Terror, globalization, and US policies in the Middle East.

Apr. 21, 1967: CIA-assisted right-wing coup deposes elected civilian government in Greece, instigating seven years of terror.

Apr. 22, 1526: First recorded slave revolt in an American settlement. 1864: "In God We Trust" was approved as the national motto, near the end of the bloodiest war in US history.

Apr. 23, 1564: Birth of William Shakespeare, England. 1616: Both William Shakespeare and Miguel de Cervantes died. 1916: Declaration of Irish independence from Britain.

Apr. 24, 1898: Spain, refusing to accede to US demands for Cuban independence, declared war on the US. 1996: Pres. Clinton signs the Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act, vastly expanding police powers and restricting defendants' rights to appeals and habeas corpus.

Apr. 25, 1792: The guillotine was first used, on Nicolas Jacques Pelletier. 1993: Over one million join march in Washington, D.C. for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender rights. (The bi and trans planks, object of much controversy among organizers, are still derided at times from the stage).