What’s Happening Today?

International Non-Binary People’s Day. Non-binary or genderqueer is a spectrum of gender identities that are not exclusively masculine or feminine - identities that are outside the gender binary. It is a completely natural phenomenon and is not related to sexual orientation.

This day is aimed at raising awareness and organising around the issues faced by non-binary people around the world.

Bastille Day (France). Bastille Day is the anniversary of the Storming of the Bastille in 1789, a fortress in France which was used as a prison by the Kings of France. 

Crowds stormed the fortress and released thousands of prisoners and it later became the major symbol of the French revolution. Hundreds of the ruling class citizens were executed here, including King Louis XVI.

Celebrations include the oldest and largest military parade in Europe, which is held on 14 July on the Champs-Élysées in Paris in front of the President of the Republic, along with other French officials and foreign guests.

What Happened Today?

1. In 1957, the first female parliamentarian in the Arab world was elected to office. Egyptian Rawya Ateya became the first woman to be elected to the National Assembly. Ateya overcame all odds and received 110,807 votes in her constituency of Cairo in the second round,

2. In 1958, Abd al-Karim Qasim, a brigadier in the Iraqi Army staged a military coup in Iraq, overthrowing the Hashemite monarchy. The Iraqi King Faisal II, the Crown Prince Abd al-Ilah, and Prime Minister Nuri al-Said were assassinated during the coup. Qasim took over the position of Prime Minister, which he held until 1963. The coup also led to the dissolution of the Arab Federation of Jordan and Iraq.

3. In 2016, a terrorist attack occurred in Nice, France, killing 85 people and Injuring more than 300 others. The attack took place during Bastille Day Celebrations when a 19-tonne truck was driven into the crowd. The attacker was eventually shot by the police.

Birthdays

1. 1967 – Joan Kagezi (in the picture), Ugandan lawyer and prosecutor who was murdered by unknown assailants in 2015, aged 47.

2. 1988 – Connor McGregor, retired Irish Professional Mixed Martial Artist and Boxer.

Sources: Wikipedia, checkiday & bornglorious.com

Picture credit: Internet photo