Today (2017 C.E. - 2024 C.E.) | Spark of Genius | Insights & Inspiration for Social Change

Belgium becomes second country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage

June 1, 2003 | By Peter Schulte | Change Milestones, Past Progress

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Belgium since 1 June 2003, making it the second country in the world to open marriage to same-sex couples, after the Netherlands, and 9 days ahead of the Canadian province of Ontario. Legislation to grant marriage rights to same-sex couples was passed by both chambers of the Federal Parliament in November 2002 and January 2003 with the support of most political parties, and received royal assent on 13 February 2003.

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The Netherlands became the world’s first country to legalize same-sex marriage

April 1, 2001 | By Peter Schulte | Past Progress

No country recognized marriage between two people of the same sex prior to the 21st century, but a law to legalize marriage equality passed the Dutch legislature in 2000 and went into effect several months later.

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Aung San Suu Kyi forms Myanmar’s National League for Democracy to combat dictatorship and promote democracy

September 27, 1988 | By Peter Schulte | Past Progress

The National League for Democracy is a liberal democratic political party in Myanmar that has become one of the most influential parties in the country’s pro-democracy movement.

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U.S. President Jimmy Carter pardons all Vietnam War draft dodgers

January 21, 1977 | By Peter Schulte | Past Progress

On January 21, 1977, U.S. President Jimmy Carter grants an unconditional pardon to hundreds of thousands of men who evaded the draft during the Vietnam War.

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U.S. President Lyndon Johnson signs the Voting Rights Act

August 6, 1965 | By Peter Schulte | Past Progress

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the Act is considered to be the most effective piece of federal civil rights legislation ever enacted in the country.

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The first session of the UN General Assembly convenes

January 10, 1946 | By Peter Schulte | Past Progress

The United Nations General Assembly is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN and the international community.

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Caroline Willard Baldwin's "A Photographic Study of Arc Spectra"

Caroline Willard Baldwin becomes the first American woman to receive a PhD in science

June 20, 1895 | By Brett Strizich | Change Milestones, Past Progress

Baldwin went on to pursue her career in academia and science by teaching at the California School of Mechanical Arts, a vocational school in San Francisco where she founded the Physics Department.

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Japanese scientist Shibasaburo Kitasato discovers the infectious agent of the bubonic plague

August 25, 1894 | By Peter Schulte | Past Progress

He traveled to Hong Kong in 1894 at the request of the Japanese government during an outbreak of the bubonic plague, and identified a bacterium that he concluded was causing the disease.

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