Important Events From Today in History – 20 September

Today in History

• 2011 The official US military policy of “don’t ask, don’t tell” ends

  Bill Clinton’s administration implemented the policy in 1994. Openly gay personnel were not allowed to serve in the United States military under the policy, but they could if they did not reveal their LGBT status.

• 2001 American President, George W. Bush Declares War on Terror

  In the aftermath of the September 11 attacks in the United States, the global military campaign against terrorism was first declared. President Bush used the phrase in a speech to the United States Congress.

• 1984 The Cosby Show Airs for the First Time

  The popular television sitcom followed the Huxtables, an African-American family from Brooklyn. The show aired on NBC for eight years and was largely based on the stand-up comedy of Bill Cosby, who played Heathcliff “Cliff” Huxtable, the show’s father.

• 1973 Billie Jean King Wins the Battle of the Sexes

  The mixed gender tennis match between top tennis player Bobby Riggs and Billie Jean King took place in Houston, Texas, after Riggs won another mixed gender match earlier in the year against Margaret Court. Riggs’ comments that he could beat any female tennis player at the age of 55 prompted the matches. King defeated Riggs and took home the $100,000 grand prize. The match was and continues to be one of the most watched tennis matches on television, with approximately 90 million people watching from around the world.

• 1904 Wilbur Wright Makes the First Circular Flight

  Wright, who is credited with inventing the first airplane with his brother Orville, completed a complete circle in 1 minute and 16 seconds on the Wright Flyer II.