September 24th

1909 -- US: Anti-war, pro-labor activist Emma Goldman refuses to comply with the Philadelphia police chief’s order that she had to run her speeches by him first before conducting them.

1918 -- Canada: Government declares the labor union the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) to be illegal.
A federal order in council declared that while Canada was engaged in war, 14 organizations were to be considered unlawful, including the IWW. Penalty for membership was set at five years in prison. Nevertheless, workers continued to organize. On April 2, 1919, the ban was lifted.

1924 -- India: Mohandas Gandhi begins 21-day fast for Hindu-Moslem unity.

1934 -- John Brunner, British sci-fi author, is born. He was an advocate of nuclear disarmament.

1953 – Korea/India: 23 Korean-American US soldiers who were taken as prisoners of war are offered the chance to return to the USA during a United Nations prisoner exchange, but refuse. They are instead turned over to India by the North Korean command. The soldiers issue this statement: "We love our country and our people. . . . Unfortunately, under present conditions in America, the voices of those who speak out for peace and freedom are rapidly being silenced. We do not intend to give the American government a chance of silencing our voices too."

1961 -- US: Herbert Lee, 52, local African American civil rights leader and freedom school attendee is shot by State Representative Hurst.

1968 -- US: Anti-war protesters destroy 10,000 draft files in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

1969 -- US: Chicago 8 Conspiracy Trial begins. Eight antiwar activists are put on trial for their activities at the 1968 Democratic National Convention. They are all found not guilty.

1969 -- US: At 4:45 p.m., 15 minutes after the second shift had begun, Local 598 Fisher Body workers took on GM in the longest strike by the UAW in GM history.

1985 -- Poland: Wojciech Jankowski resists conscription into the Communist army in Gdansk, and is later jailed for three years.

1994 -- US: Protesters crash the Washington, D.C. 50th birthday party of the World Bank & International Monetary Fund.

1995 – The Netherlands: As part of International Buy Nothing Day, activists dressed as rats urge shoppers at a Dutch shopping mall to "leave the rat race."

2000 -- US: Jubilee 2000 March to forgive the debts of developing nations draws near 1000 supporters in Seattle, Washington.

2005 -- US: Whistleblowers go public with descriptions of what they call routine, severe abuse in Iraq and Afghanistan in a Human Rights Watch report.