December 6, 2020
Day 341 of 366

December 6th is the 341st day of the year. It is Independence Day in Finland as they celebrate their independence from Russia in 1917.

In the United States, today is “celebrated” as National Pawnbrokers Day, National Microwave Oven Day, National Gazpacho Day, St. Nicholas Day, and Miners’ Day.

Historical items of note:

• In 1790, the United States Congress moved from New York City to Philadelphia.
• In 1865, Georgia ratified the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime. Georgia was the last the required 27 of the then 36 states required for ratification.
• In 1877, the first edition of The Washington Post was published.
• In 1896, songwriter Ira Gershwin was born.
• In 1897, London became the world’s first city to host licensed taxicabs.
• In 1912, the Nefertiti Bust was discovered.
• In 1921, the Anglo-Irish Treaty was signed in London by British and Irish representatives.
• In 1922, one year to the day after the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty, the Irish Free State came into existence.
• In 1933, United States federal judge John M. Woolsey ruled that James Joyce’s novel Ulysses was not obscene.
• In 1947, the Everglades National Park in Florida was dedicated.
• In 1948, actress JoBeth Williams was born.
• In 1957, the launchpad explosion of Vanguard TV3 thwarted the first United States attempt to launch a satellite into Earth orbit.
• In 1969, Canadian actress Torri Higginson was born.
• In 1975, English actor, director, and screenwriter Noel Clarke was born.
• In 1991, Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country premiered.
• In 1999, the Recording Industry Association of America sued the peer-to-peer file-sharing service Napster, alleging copyright infringement.
• In 2006, NASA revealed photographs taken by Mars Global Surveyor suggesting the presence of liquid water on Mars.

December 6th is National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women.

Also known as White Ribbon Day, the day is commemorated in Canada on the anniversary of the 1989 École Polytechnique massacre, in which armed student Marc Lépine murdered fourteen women and injured ten others in the name of “fighting feminism”.

The commemoration date was established by the Parliament of Canada in 1991. Canadian flags on all federal buildings, including the Peace Tower on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario, are flown at half-mast. Canadians are also encouraged to observe a minute of silence and wear white or purple ribbons to share the commitment to end violence against women.

The day is aimed to examine the power dynamics between men and women, and tries to ensure that the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Woman stands for more than simply one massacre. Instead, it stands for awareness and change against the violence that occurs to women all around the world at the hands of men. Thirty-five percent of women worldwide have experienced physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence, according to the United Nations.

This day stands for change and for awareness of the power dynamic existing between men and women all over the world.

The Thing About Today is an effort to look at each day of 2020 with respect to its historical context.

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