Author Archives: William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

Unknown's avatar

About William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

Award-winning poet, playwright, and essayist. Author of three books of poetry, "Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass: Remembrance of Things Past and Present"; "Sometimes Blue Knights Wear Black Hats"; "The Black Feminine Mystique," and a novel, "Streets of Rage," written under his pen name Easy Waters. All four books are available on Amazon.com. Waters has over 25 years of experience in the criminal legal system. He is a change agent for a just society and a catalyst for change.

On this Day in American history, September 2, 1885 — White Miners Riot Against Chinese Laborers in Rock Springs, Wyoming

Posted on September 2, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

In 1885, the Union Pacific Railroad employed 500 coal miners in Rock Springs, Wyoming, two-thirds of whom were Chinese. White miners, angry that the railroad was hiring Chinese miners to take their jobs, decided to drive the Chinese out of … Continue reading →

Posted in Lest We Forget, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

On this Day in American history, September 1, 1884 — Chinese American Child Denied Admission to Public School in San Francisco

Posted on September 1, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

During the week of September 1, 1884, Joseph and Mary Tape, immigrants from China who had lived in the United States for over a decade, attempted to enroll their eight-year-old, American-born daughter, Mamie Tape, in San Francisco’s Spring Valley School. … Continue reading →

Posted in Lest We Forget, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

On this day in American history, August 31, 1966 — Alabama Forbids Local School Districts From Desegregating

Posted on August 31, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

A decade after the United States Supreme Court’s 1954 ruling in Brown v. Board of Education declaring racial segregation in public schools unconstitutional, many school districts throughout the South still maintained segregated public schools. In 1964, the United States Congress passed the … Continue reading →

Posted in Lest We Forget, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

On this day in American history, August 30, 1956 — Riots Prevent School Desegregation in Mansfield, Texas

Posted on August 30, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

In 1956, Mansfield, Texas, was a small farming town of 1500 people. Its schools were strictly segregated and facilities for black students were run-down and under-funded. Before the start of the 1956-1957 school year, in compliance with a federal desegregation … Continue reading →

Posted in Lest We Forget, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

On this day in American history, August 28, 1955 — Emmett Till, 14-year-old Chicago Youth, Abducted and Murdered in Mississippi Delta

Posted on August 28, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

On August 20, 1955, 14-year-old Emmett Till boarded a train in Chicago, Illinois, headed for Money, Mississippi, to spend two weeks with his great-uncle and cousins. A few days into his visit, Till and a group of friends went into … Continue reading →

Posted in Lest We Forget, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

On this day in American history, August 26, 1874 — Mob of 400 Lynches Sixteen Black Men Kidnapped from Tennessee Jail

Posted on August 26, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

On August 26, 1874, sixteen African American men were held in the Gibson County Jail in Trenton, Tennessee, transferred from Picketsville, a neighboring town where they’d been arrested and accused of shooting at two white men. Around 2:00 a.m. that … Continue reading →

Posted in Lest We Forget, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

On this day in American history, August 25, 1956 — Montgomery, Alabama, Home of Bus Boycott Supporter Bombed

Posted on August 25, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

On the night of April 25, 1956, several sticks of dynamite were thrown into the yard of Pastor Robert Graetz’s Montgomery, Alabama, home where they exploded, breaking the home’s front windows and damaging the front door. A young white minister … Continue reading →

Posted in Lest We Forget, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

On this day in American history, August 24, 1923 — Black Man Lynched in Jacksonville, Florida

Posted on August 24, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

On August 24, 1923, a 34-year-old black farmhand Ben Hart was killed based on suspicion that he was a “Peeping Tom” who had that morning peered into a young white girl’s bedroom window near Jacksonville, Florida. According to witnesses, approximately … Continue reading →

Posted in Lest We Forget, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

On this day in American history, August 23, 1989 — Black Teen Murdered by White Mob in Brooklyn, New York

Posted on August 23, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

On August 23, 1989, 16-year-old Yusef Hawkins and three friends went to the predominately white Bensonhurt section of Brooklyn, New York, to inquire about a used Pontiac for sale. On their way through the neighborhood, the three black boys encountered … Continue reading →

Posted in Lest We Forget, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

On this day in American history, August 22, 1905 — Whites Riot After Black Man Enters Pittsburgh Restaurant

Posted on August 22, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

According to newspaper reports, an African-American man named Charles Julius Miller, and an unnamed African-American woman entered Café Neapolitan, a Pittsburgh restaurant, on August, 22, 1905. The couple was immediately refused service and ordered to leave. When Miller refused to … Continue reading →

Posted in Lest We Forget, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment