Posted under mtv
Today is historically a big day for speaking truth to power and stepping up to the man: July 2 was the day the Second Continental Congress resolved to sever ties with the British Empire (though obviously the Declaration of Independence wouldn’t be signed until two days later, marking the Independence Day holiday). In 1777, Vermont became the first state in the U.S. to abolish slavery, and in 1964, President Lyndon Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act that guarded against segregation. July 2 is a day for all kinds of revolution — in 1881, 20th President James Garfield was shot, leading to his death later that year.
In one of his finest speeches, Thomas Jefferson once said, “The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.” In honor of rising up to fight the power, enjoy Public Enemy’s 1989 call to arms.