French forces massacre African veterans at Thiaroye

Franklin Roosevelt issued Executive Order 8802 after pressure including A. Philip Randolph’s proposed march on Washington. It prohibited discrimination in defense employment and created a complaints...

The Pittsburgh Courier launched the Double V campaign: victory against fascism abroad and racism at home. Black readers and activists challenged the contradiction of fighting for democracy while...

The All India Congress Committee adopted the Quit India resolution in Bombay. The demand for immediate British withdrawal asserted colonized people’s political agency during a war fought in the name...

British authorities arrested Gandhi and other Congress leaders after the Quit India resolution. Activists continued resistance despite the removal of prominent organizers. The crackdown shows how...

The ANC adopted Africans’ Claims, demanding full citizenship and applying the language of wartime freedoms to African people. The document challenged an international order that promised liberty while...

A military court in Dakar tried thirty-four former soldiers following the Thiaroye massacre. The proceedings followed veterans’ demands over payments after service in France. Criminal prosecution...

Sukarno and Mohammad Hatta proclaimed Indonesian independence in Jakarta. The declaration asserted popular sovereignty after Dutch colonial rule and Japanese occupation. It marked a claim to...

Hồ Chí Minh proclaimed the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. The declaration invoked principles of equality while criticizing French colonial exploitation and repression. It turned the language of...

Public sessions of the Fifth Pan-African Congress brought workers, activists, and anticolonial leaders together in Manchester. Delegates demanded self-government and opposed racial discrimination. The...

Returning Black veteran Isaac Woodard challenged a bus driver’s treatment and was removed from the bus in South Carolina. Police beat him and permanently blinded him. Campaigning around his case...