TODAY IN HISTORY: Singh wins do-or-die election
In 1880, the New Brunswick legislature in Fredericton was destroyed by fire.
In 1943, George Harrison, former lead guitarist for The Beatles, was born in Liverpool, England. He was diagnosed with throat cancer in 1998, and survived an attack by an intruder who stabbed him several times in 1999. But the cancer later spread to his brain, and he died at the age of 58 at a friend's Los Angeles home on Nov. 29, 2001.
In 1948, Communists seized power in Czechoslovakia.
In 1964, Cassius Clay, who later changed his name to Muhammad Ali, became world heavyweight boxing champion by defeating Sonny Liston in Miami Beach.
In 1966, the 13-km, $200-million east-west Toronto subway was opened by Prime Minister Lester Pearson.
In 1968, Quebec Premier Daniel Johnson accused Justice Minister Pierre Trudeau of displaying a dangerous ignorance of Quebec and the nature of federalism.
In 1972, Ontario Hydro’s nuclear power generating plant was officially opened.
In 1981, singer Christopher Cross was the big winner at the Grammy Awards, picking up Album of the Year for his self-titled debut, infamously beating Pink Floyd’s rock opera “The Wall.”
In 1986, after 20 years of rule, Philippines president Ferdinand Marcos resigned. The 68-year-old Marcos and his family fled to Guam. Corazon Aquino, widow of the assassinated Benigno Aquino, succeeded Marcos.
In 1993, The Supreme Court of Canada ruled 4-3 that gay and lesbian couples aren't families under the Canadian Human Rights Act. The judges said Parliament never intended to include homosexual couples when it amended the human rights law in 1983 to prevent employers from discriminating against people based on family status. Justice Antonio Lamer wrote that he might have voted differently if the act had prohibited discrimination against homosexuals. Justice Minister Kim Campbell had introduced amendments to do just that in December.
In 1997, multimillionaire John du Pont was found guilty of murder in the fatal shooting of Olympic champion wrestler David Schultz, but a jury decided he was mentally ill. du Pont died in prison in 2010 at age 72 of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. In 2019, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh won his door-die bid to capture a B.C. seat in the House of Commons. The 12-point victory in the riding of Burnaby South tightened Singh's shaky grip on the reins of the federal New Democrats.
In 2020, Canadians and their family members flown home from Wuhan, China, were released from quarantine over the novel coronavirus. They spent that time at CFB Trenton, Ontario being monitored for any symptoms. Chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam said the evacuees did not pose a risk of transmitting the disease when they returned to their homes. Foreign Affairs Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne advised Canadians planning trips overseas to check his department's travel advisories before booking, calling the outbreak a very dynamic situation.