February 15 Birthday
February 15, 1898: The USS Maine exploded in Havana Harbor, killing 266 of her 355 crew. The cause was almost certainly a coal bunker fire that ignited ammunition — a 1974 Navy investigation confirmed this — but in 1898, the American press, led by William Randolph Hearst's New York Journal, blamed Spain. "Remember the Maine! To hell with Spain!" became the rallying cry. Congress declared war on April 25. The Spanish-American War lasted ten weeks. The United States gained Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines, and exercised control over Cuba. The war was a turning point: the United States became an imperial power. Mark Twain, who supported the war initially, became one of its fiercest critics after seeing what American occupation did to the Philippines. He called it "the United States lynching the Philippines." On February 15, 1965, Canada adopted its current flag — the red maple leaf on a white background. The design was chosen by a committee after a national debate that lasted months. The previous flag was the Canadian Red Ensign, which bore the Union Jack and the Canadian coat of arms. Prime Minister Lester Pearson wanted a flag that was distinctively Canadian and free of colonial symbolism. The debate was bitter — John Diefenbaker, the Conservative leader, fought the change fiercely. The final vote was 163 to 78. The flag was raised over Parliament Hill on February 15, 1965, in front of 10,000 spectators. The maple leaf had been a Canadian symbol since the 1700s. February 15, 2003: The largest coordinated day of protest in human history. An estimated 10 to 30 million people in over 600 cities worldwide demonstrated against the impending invasion of Iraq. In London, 1.5 million marched. In Rome, 3 million. In New York, 400,000 braved freezing temperatures. The protests did not stop the war, which began on March 20. But they demonstrated that the opposition was global, massive, and organized — something no antiwar movement had achieved before the internet. The war would last eight years, kill hundreds of thousands, and produce no weapons of mass destruction. Galileo Galilei was born on this day in 1564, the same year Shakespeare was born. He improved the telescope, discovered Jupiter's moons, observed sunspots, and championed the Copernican system. He died under house arrest in 1642, the year Newton was born. Susan B. Anthony, born this day in 1820, was arrested in 1872 for voting illegally. She was fined $100 and never paid it. The Nineteenth Amendment, guaranteeing women the right to vote, was called the Susan B. Anthony Amendment. People born on February 15 fall under the zodiac sign of Aquarius. The birthstone is Amethyst and the birth flower is Violet. Historical events on February 15 include 1898: USS Maine explodes in Havana Harbor, killing 266, 1965: Canada adopts the red maple leaf flag, 2003: Largest coordinated peace protest in history (millions worldwide oppose Iraq War). Famous people born on February 15 include Galileo Galilei (1564), Susan B. Anthony (1820), Jane Seymour (1951).