JFK SAYS WE WANT PEACE IN LAOS
Using maps to illustrate his points, President Kennedy discussed the current situation in Laos at his televised news conference in Washington today.
Laos is in the grip of a civil war between the pro-Western regime & pro-Communist Pathet Lao.
JFK said the United States will not tolerate the loss of Laos to rebel forces & that along with our allies, we will consider military options.
JFK said:
"I want to make it clear...all we want in Laos is peace...a truly neutral government & a settlement at the conference table."
JFK points to map of Laos
March 22, 1963
JFK PUSHES ANTI-POLL TAX AMENDMENT
President Kennedy sent a telegram today to the governors of states that have not ratified the proposed 24th amendment to the U.S. Constitution which outlaws the collection of poll taxes.
JFK emphasized the importance of ratification of the amendment to insure a fair election in 1964.
He said:
"Every effort should be made to broaden the base of citizen participation."
Receipt for Payment of Poll Tax
March 22, 1965
STATE DEPARTMENT SAYS US USED GAS AGAINST VC
The State Department today revealed that non-lethal gas was supplied by the United States to the South Vietnamese Army to be used in battle with the Viet Cong.
Secretary of State Dean Rusk says the gas is the same type used by police in riot control.*
*The North Vietnamese & USSR protested the introduction of "poisonous gas" into the war.
March 22, 1972
ERA PASSED BY US SENATE
The proposed Equal Rights Amendment passed the Senate today & will be sent to the states for ratification.
The amendment, if ratified by 3/4 of the states, will provide for the legal equality of the sexes & will also prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex.*
*ERA failed to achieve ratification by the required # of states.
ERA Activists
March 22, 1933
FDR SIGNS BEER & WINE REVENUE ACT
President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed into law today the Beer & Wine Revenue Act.
The act levies a Federal tax on all alcoholic beverages & gives the states the option of further regulation of the sale & distribution of beer & wine.*
*The law was followed by the ratification of the 21st Amendment in December 1933 which officially ended Prohibition.
March 22, 1820
AMERICAN NAVAL HERO KILLED IN DUEL
Hero of the war with the Barbary Pirates, Stephen Decatur, was mortally wounded today in a duel with James Barron at Bladensburg, Maryland.
Decatur played a role in the court martial of Barron & later opposed his reinstatement into the US Navy.
This led to a disagreement between the two men that led to today's duel.
James Barron was wounded in the leg but is expected to recover. Decatur, who suffered a wound in the abdomen, was taken to his home on Lafayette Square in Washington where he died.*
*Barron was reinstated in the Navy in 1821.
Stephen Decatur
March 22, 1765
PARLIAMENT PASSES STAMP ACT
The British Parliament passed the Stamp Act in London today.
The act will levy a direct tax on all printed materials, commercial or legal, sold in the American colonies.
The revenue raised from the tax will be used to defray the cost of defending the vast lands in America acquired by Great Britain as a result of the French & Indian War.*
*The Stamp Act will result in a storm of protest in the colonies. The act, repealed in 1766, was a key event leading to the American Revolution.
British Tax Stamp (1765)
