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1776: Colonists in North America declare themselves independent of Britain, and name their Atlantic Ocean coastal country the United States of America. One-fifth (20%) of the population are enslaved Africans. Several signers of the Declaration of Independence have been made wealthy through the labour of the Africans they keep enslaved.
1811: Venezuela declares independence from Spain
Under the leadership of Francisco de Miranda, Venezuela declared its independence from Spain. This started the Venezuelan War of Independence. The country gained independence 10 years later in 1821.
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1865: The children’s fantasy Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is first published, featuring a Dodo bird with the facial characteristics of the author, Lewis G. Carroll. The Dodo was native to Mauritius, and inspired wonder from Europeans who encountered the tall, flightless bird. The last Dodo was exterminated by Europeans in 1681, rendering the species extinct.
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1884: The Statue of Liberty was presented to the United States by the French in Paris.
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1910: In what was billed as the “Fight of the Century,” African American boxer Jack Johnson defeated James Jackson Jeffries, who was considered the “Great White Hope”; his victory led to nationwide celebrations by African Americans that were occasionally met by violence from whites, resulting in more than 20 deaths across the country.
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1911: Colonial authorities in British Nigeria begin using African prisoners to grow cash crops, as a way to occupy prisoners who are medically unfit for hard labour. In Niger Province, prisoners plant two acres of cotton, which will be harvested on 13 December. However, as the production of cash crops increases, the work will become extremely strenuous, defeating the project’s original purpose.
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1985: Ruth Lawrence achieved the best first-class mathematics degree at the University of Oxford, at the age of 13.
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1994: NUPENG began one of the most bitter and economically painful strikes in Nigerian history. It was to last almost nine weeks and was to seek the release of M.K.O. Abiola, the apparent winner of the June 1993 presidential election who was arrested by military authorities.
1995: Armenian Constitution is adopted
A nation-wide referendum led to the approval and adoption of Armenia’s constitution. The country gained its independence after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991.
1996: Prince Charles, Prince of Wales delivered his terms for a divorce from Diana, Princess of Wales – an offer of £15m reportedly backed by the Queen.
1996: World’s first live cloned mammal is born
Dolly the Sheep, a domestic ship was cloned using cells from an adult sheep by a team led by Ian Wilmut, Keith Campbell at the Roslin Institute. While her birth was considered to be a success for cloning science, she did not live very long – scientists had predicted that she would live for about 12 years, but she died just a few months short of her 7th birthday.
1973: Coup in Rwanda
Then Army Chief of Staff, Juvénal Habyarimana, staged a coup and overthrew the President, Grégoire Kayibanda. Habyarimana then held the post of president for 20 years.
1975: Cape Verde gains independence from Portugal
The Island country had come under Portuguese colonial control in the late 15th century.
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY: July 04
Josephine Okei-Odumakin, 58 years
Nigerian human rights and women’s rights activist, was born on 4 July 1966 in Zaria, Kaduna, Nigeria. Seeking justice for women, she was arrested 17 times for her activism by the military government of Ibrahim Babangida. The founder of Women Arise for Change, which has handled 2,000 legal cases for abused women, she was awarded the 2013 International Women of Courage Award from the U.S. State Department.
![](https://b.blackcampus.online/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Josephine-Okei-Odumakin.jpg)
Amantle Montsho, 41 years
Motswana champion athlete was born on 4 July 1983 in Maun, Botswana. The first Botswana woman to participate in an Olympic Games, in 2004, she competed in the finals in her specialty, the 400 metres, in the 2008 Summer Olympics. She won gold twice in the African Championships in the 400m, and holds the Botswana national record, both indoor and outdoor, in that event.
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