JFK's Harvard sweater sold at auction for more than $85,000
This undated photo released by RR Auction shows a Harvard University letter sweater that once belonged to former President John F. Kennedy, up for auction between Feb. 11-18, 2021, by the Boston-based auction firm. (Nikki Brickett/RR Auction via AP)BOSTON โ John F. Kennedy's Harvard University sweater, given away to a television cameraman who mentioned that he was chilly while interviewing Jacqueline Kennedy, has sold at auction for more than $85,000. The crimson wool cardigan, featuring a large black block-letter โHโ and eight white mother-of-pearl buttons, was one of several mementos from U.S. presidents sold during a President's Day auction that ended Thursday, according to Boston-based RR Auction. AdJFK's Harvard sweater, with his surname sewn into the collar, was acquired by Herman Lang, a CBS cameraman who filmed an interview with Jacqueline Kennedy in 1964, the year after the 35th president's assassination in Dallas. It is believed that because the interview was outdoors, Lang mentioned that he was cold and was offered the sweater, according to RR Auction.
Unity has long been a theme, and anxiety, for new presidents
(AP Photo, File)NEW YORK โ When Joe Biden addresses the country for the first time as president, his inaugural speech is likely to echo calls for unity that predecessors have invoked since the first time George Washington was sworn in. Unity has since been a theme, and an anxiety, for many incoming presidents, who have faced economic and social crises and moments when the very future of the U.S. was in doubt. โUnity has always been an aspiration," says presidential historian Douglas Brinkley. But when we have domestic turmoil we use the word unity.โThe United States was forged through compromise among factions that disagreed profoundly on slavery, regional influence and the relative powers of state and federal government. โA president often claims the country is โunitedโ behind a belief when itโs more wishful thinking than reality,โ Widmer says.
Statue of slave kneeling before Lincoln is removed in Boston
FILE - In this June 25, 2020, file photo, a statue that depicts a freed slave kneeling at President Abraham Lincoln's feet rests on a pedestal in Boston. On Tuesday, Dec. 29, the statue that drew objections amid a national reckoning with racial injustice was removed from its perch. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File)A statue of Abraham Lincoln with a freed slave appearing to kneel at his feet โ optics that drew objections amid a national reckoning with racial injustice โ has been removed from its perch in downtown Boston. The copy was installed in Boston because the city was home to the statueโs white creator, Thomas Ball. Freed Black donors paid for the original in Washington; white politician and circus showman Moses Kimball financed the copy in Boston.
US lawmakers unveil anti-slavery constitutional amendment
FILE - This Nov. 29, 2011, file photo shows the signature of president Abraham Lincoln on a rare, restored copy of the 13th Amendment that ended slavery, in Chicago. As ratified, the original amendment has permitted exploitation of labor by convicted felons for over 155 years since the abolition of slavery. Constitutional amendments are rare and require approval by two-thirds of the House and Senate, as well as ratification by three-quarters of state legislatures. In Merkleyโs Oregon, voters in 2002 approved the elimination of constitutional language that prohibited Black Americans from living in the state unless they were enslaved. The prevalence of prison labor has been largely accepted as a means for promoting rehabilitation, teaching trade skills and reducing idleness among prisoners.
Lock of Lincoln's hair and bloodied telegram up for auction
This July 2020 photo released by RR Auction shows a lock of hair from former President Abraham Lincoln, to be auctioned Sept. 12, 2020, by the Boston-based auction firm. (Nikki Brickett/RR Auction via AP)This is one macabre auction: A lock of Abraham Lincoln's hair, wrapped in a bloodstained telegram about his 1865 assassination, is up for sale. The auction house set the minimum bid at $10,000 but expects the lock and telegram to fetch $75,000 or more, spokesman Mike Graff said. The hair is mounted on an official War Department telegram sent to Dr. Todd by George Kinnear, his assistant in the Lexington, Kentucky, post office. The telegram is evidence to disprove the misinformation and conspiracy theories in the Lincoln assassination, Graff said.
Nearly 1 in 4 VA employees report sex harassment, audit says
The VA is not the same VA as four years ago, insisted acting VA deputy secretary Pam Powers, pointing to increased outreach to women and improved trust ratings in the VA from employees and patients alike according to internal polling. His effort seeks to reinforce a call by top Democratic and Republican leaders of the House and Senate Veterans Affairs Committee last week for a faster timeline. About 1 in 3 VA employees said they witnessed an act of sexual harassment. Overall, an estimated 26% of female and 14% of male VA employees experienced harassment during the two-year period. A study released by the VA last year found 1 in 4 women veterans using VA health care reported inappropriate comments by male veterans on VA grounds, raising concerns they may delay or miss their treatments.
What is Juneteenth? It could become a state holiday in Virginia
Ralph Northam announced he is looking to make Juneteenth a state holiday. Juneteenth, celebrated annually on June 19, commemorates June 19, 1865, when Union general Gordon Granger read federal orders in Galveston, Texas, that all slaves in Texas were free. The day is also known as Freedom Day or Emancipation Day. Four hours of additional holiday time are also granted to state employees on the day before Thanksgiving. 2020 was the final year Virginia recognized Lee-Jackson Day as a state holiday.
People of color make gains in mayoral races across the US
In Tucson, Arizona, voters elected Regina Romero, the daughter of farmworkers, as the first Latina mayor in the city's history. Political newcomer Frank Whitfield, a former CEO of Lorain County Urban League, was elected the first black mayor of Elyria, Ohio. Sylvester Turner, Houston's second black mayor, won the plurality of votes and appeared to be heading into a runoff against Tony Buzbee, a candidate who has raised money for Republican Donald Trump. Barreto said the often overlook local races were important because they set up a "bench" for future candidates seeking higher offices. The gains nationwide came a month after voters in Montgomery, Alabama, elected Steven Reed as the city's first black mayor.