International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
Date: 21 March
On 21 March 1960, in the township of Sharpeville, South Africa, police opened fire and killed 69 people who were peacefully demonstrating against apartheid's "pass laws."
The United Nations General Assembly subsequently declared that day, 21 March, the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, and called on the international community not only to commemorate that tragedy, but also to work together to combat racism and discrimination wherever they exist.
