Contemporary
1968 Olympics Black Power Salute: Tommie Smith and John Carlos
Smith and Carlos were suspended by the US team and sent home, but their silent protest became one of the most famous images of the twentieth century.
Era · 1945 – present
Contemporary
From the Cold War and the Space Race to the fall of the Berlin Wall and the world we live in today.
Contemporary
Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. (1968) in Memphis
King died about an hour after being shot; unrest broke out in more than 100 US cities, and James Earl Ray later pleaded guilty to the murder.
Contemporary
Apollo 8 (1968): First Crewed Orbit of the Moon and Earthrise
The crew orbited the Moon ten times and returned safely, proving the Saturn V and Apollo spacecraft for a lunar landing.
Contemporary
The Troubles (1968–1998): Conflict in Northern Ireland
About 3,500 people were killed before the conflict was largely brought to an end by ceasefires and the Good Friday Agreement of 1998.
Contemporary
Apollo 11 Moon Landing (1969): The First Humans on the Moon
Armstrong and Aldrin landed and walked on the Moon and the crew returned safely to Earth, fulfilling the goal set by President Kennedy in 1961.
Contemporary
Battle of Hamburger Hill (1969): The Assault on Ap Bia Mountain
US and South Vietnamese troops took the hill on 20 May 1969 at heavy cost, then abandoned it in early June, fuelling criticism of the war in the United States.
Contemporary
Sino-Soviet Border Conflict (1969): Clash at Zhenbao Island
The fighting stopped short of full-scale war after the Kosygin–Zhou meeting of 11 September 1969, but it pushed China towards rapprochement with the United States.
Contemporary
Libyan Revolution 1969: Muammar Gaddafi Seizes Power in Libya
The monarchy was abolished and the Libyan Arab Republic proclaimed under a Revolutionary Command Council headed by Gaddafi, who ruled Libya until 2011.
Contemporary
Occupation of Alcatraz (1969-1971): Indians of All Tribes Protest
The occupation ended with the removal of the last 15 occupiers, but it inspired the Red Power movement and helped shift federal policy towards Native self-determination.
Contemporary
Woodstock Festival (1969): Three Days of Peace and Music
An estimated 400,000 people attended a largely peaceful but chaotic festival that became the defining symbol of the 1960s counterculture.
Contemporary
Stonewall Riots (1969): The Uprising That Sparked Gay Liberation
Several nights of protest against police harassment turned gay rights into a mass movement and led to the first Pride marches in 1970.
Contemporary
Concorde First Flight (1969): The Anglo-French Supersonic Jet
Prototype Concorde 001 made a successful maiden flight, leading to supersonic airline service from 1976 until 2003.