Wikipedia:Main Page history/2012 July 11

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Today's featured article
Mumia Abu-Jamal (born 1954) is an American convict, serving a life sentence for the 1981 murder of Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner. He was sentenced to death at his first trial in July 1982, and his case became an international cause célèbre. Before his arrest, he was an activist and radio journalist who became President of the Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists. He was a member of the Black Panther Party until October 1970. Supporters and opponents disagreed on the appropriateness of the death penalty, his guilt, and whether he received a fair trial. He was described as "perhaps the world's best known death-row inmate". During his imprisonment he has published several books and other commentaries, notably Live from Death Row (1995). In 2008, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the murder conviction but ordered a new capital sentencing hearing because the jury was improperly instructed. Subsequently, the United States Supreme Court also allowed his conviction to stand but ordered the appeals court to reconsider its decision as to the sentence. In 2011, the Third Circuit again affirmed the conviction as well as its decision to vacate the death sentence, and the District Attorney of Philadelphia announced that prosecutors would no longer seek the death penalty. He was removed from death row in January 2012. (more...) Recently featured: Halifax Gibbet – Cross of Gold speech – Dendrocollybia Archive – By email – More featured articles...
Did you know...
From Wikipedia's newest content: ... that the constellation of Corona Australis contains one of the closest star-forming regions (pictured) to the solar system? ... that the Millennium episode "The Beginning and the End" features the Talking Heads song "Life During Wartime"? ... that the National Film Board of Canada documentary My Ancestors Were Rogues and Murderers defends the controversial Canadian seal hunt? ... that one of the most talked about red carpet gowns of 2000 was worn by a Spice Girl, its designer, and Matt Stone, as well as by Jennifer Lopez? ... that, despite spending almost their entire lives underground, Cape mole rats nonetheless have activity cycles linked to day and night? ... that comedian Hiroiki Ariyoshi went from earning 20 million yen a month to earning virtually nothing, only to then become Japan's top television personality? ... that the "Family Bible" was used as toilet paper? Archive – Start a new article – Nominate an article

In the news
In tennis, Serena Williams (pictured) and Roger Federer win the women's singles and men's singles, respectively, at the Wimbledon Championships. At least 141 people are killed in a flash flood in the Krasnodar Krai region of Russia. The Shard in London is inaugurated as the tallest building in Europe, with a height of 310 metres (1,020 ft). In association football, the Copa Libertadores concludes with Corinthians defeating Boca Juniors in the Finals. CERN announces the discovery of a new particle with properties consistent with the Higgs boson after experiments at the Large Hadron Collider. GlaxoSmithKline pleads guilty to criminal charges of health care fraud and is fined a record US$3 billion. Wikinews – Recent deaths – More current events...
On this day...
July 11: Day of the Flemish Community of Belgium; Naadam begins in Mongolia 1405 – Chinese explorer Zheng He led a massive fleet of 317 ships from Suzhou on a trade mission to India. 1804 – U.S. Vice President Aaron Burr mortally wounded former U.S. Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton during a duel (pistols pictured) in Weehawken, New Jersey. 1882 – Anglo-Egyptian War: British naval forces began their bombardment of Alexandria against Urabi forces. 1957 – Prince Karīm al-Hussaynī succeeded Sultan Mahommed Shah as the Aga Khan, becoming the 49th Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims. 1960 – To Kill a Mockingbird, a novel by Harper Lee, featuring themes of racial injustice and the destruction of innocence in the American Deep South, was first published. 1986 – The Parliament of New Zealand passed the Homosexual Law Reform Act, legalising consensual homosexual sex. More anniversaries: July 10 – July 11 – July 12 Archive – By email – List of historical anniversaries It is now July 11, 2012 (UTC) – Refresh this page

Today's featured picture

The Pink Robin (Petroica rodinogaster) is a small passerine bird native to temperate forests and subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests of southeastern Australia. Measuring 13.5 cm (5.5 in) in length, the robin has a small thin black bill, and dark brown eyes and legs. The male (seen here) has a distinctive white crown and pink breast, grey-black upperparts, wings and tail.

Photo: JJ Harrison

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