This week, Scott and Aaron remember pivotal moments in American social movements, from the ratification of the 19th Amendment (guaranteeing the right to vote for women) to Martin Luther King, Jr’s “I Have A Dream” speech in 1963 – and a lesser-known but major figure in the women’s rights movement in the early 20th century. They’re all examples of a key fact about many social movements: they may culminate with rapid gains, but it often takes decades of hard work and dedicated activism, on the local and state level as well as the national level, in order to enable those big achievements in the end. (Also this week: the birthday of famed author Mary Shelley, whose “Frankenstein” grew out of one extremely cold summer.)
97.9 The Hill WCHL and Chapelboro.com are your headquarters for local news and local voices in Chapel Hill-Carrboro. Every Thursday morning, local historian Scott Washington joins 97.9 The Hill’s Aaron Keck for “History Matters,” a look back at notable events and significant figures from this week in history, ranging from pioneers to writers to inventors to civil rights champions and more, locally, nationally, and beyond.