MARCH 2-4 THEATER: JOE TURNER'S COME AND GONE. Part of August Wilson's 10-play cycle chronicling the African-American experience in the 20th century. 8 p.
m. March 2-3; 3 p.m.
March 4. Tohill Theater, Bunce Hall, Rowan University, Glassboro. (856) 256-4545.
THROUGH MARCH 14 JAPAN: OMIZUTORI (WATER-DRAWING FESTIVAL). At midnight, a solemn rite is performed in the flickering light of pine torches. People rush for sparks from the torches, which are believed to have magic power against evil.
THROUGH MARCH 25 ISRAELI FILM FESTIVAL. Showcase of talented contemporary Israeli artists and the variety of perspectives they bring to their work. Various locations in Philadelphia and the surrounding suburbs.
Details or by calling (215) 834-8493. THROUGH MARCH 31 IRISH-AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH. Presidential proclamation called for by House Joint Resolution 401.
LEARN RUSSIAN MONTH. Take a Russian language course, and learn the language or brush up on your Russian. NATIONAL WOMENS HISTORY MONTH.
A time for re-examining and celebrating the wide range of women's contributions and achievements that are too often overlooked in the telling of U.S. history.
MARCH 2 DESI ARNAZ BIRTH ANNIVERSARY. Born on this date in 1917 in Santiago, Cuba, as Desidero Alberto Arnaz y Acha III, to a wealthy family. The 1933 revolution sent the family (now impoverished) to Miami, and the young Arnaz sought a music career.
He moved into acting, meeting his future wife, Lucille Ball, at RKO. Together they created one of the great TV comedies, I Love Lucy. He died on Dec.
2, 1986 in Del Mar, Calif. ETHIOPIA: ADWA DAY. Ethiopian forces under Menelik II inflicted a crushing defeat on the invading Italians at Adwa in 1896.
LATIN AMERICAN STUDIES SPEAKER SERIES: workshop and talk by mariachi musician and anthropologist Russell Rodriguez. His talk, Transnational Melodies - Mexicano and Chicano Musical and Political Dialogues, 4:15 p.m.
in the Cunniff Lecture Hall, Science Center. Workshop 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.
in the Intercultural Center, Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, Pa. (610) 328-8535. BIRTHDAYS: REGGIE BUSH, 22, football player, born in Spring Valley, Calif.
, on this date in 1985. MARCH 2-3 THEATER: HER HOLY WATER - A BLACK GIRL'S ROCK OPERA. Provocative reflection on coming of age as a black girl in a post-modern world.
8 p.m. Painted Bride Art Center, 230 Vine St.
, Phila. $25. (215) 925-9914.
MARCH 3 BULGARIA: LIBERATION DAY. Grateful tribute to the Russian, Romanian and Finnish soldiers and Bulgarian volunteers who, in the Russo-Turkish War, 1877-78, liberated Bulgaria from five centuries of Ottoman rule. CHINESE NEW YEAR PARADE IN SAN FRANCISCO.
North America's largest Chinese community salutes the Year of the Boar. INDIA: HOLI. Spring festival where people run through the streets smearing each other with brightly hued powders and colored waters.
This is observed by Indians without regard to caste. CONCERT by the Irish music band, Dervish. 8 p.
m. Zellerbach Theater, Annenberg Center, 3680 Walnut St., Phila.
$19 to $38 with discounts for seniors, students, groups and University of Pennsylvania alumni. (215) 898-3900 or . WOMEN'S SUFFRAGE PARADE ATTACKED: ANNIVERSARY.
A parade held by the National American Woman Suffrage Association held on this date in 1913 before Woodrow Wilson's inauguration turned into a near riot when people in the crowd began jeering and shoving the marchers. BIRTHDAYS: JACQUELINE (JACKIE) JOYNER-KERSEE, 45, Olympian gold medal heptathlete, born in East St. Louis, Ill.
, on this date in 1962. HERSCHEL WALKER, 45, former football player, born in Wrightsville, Ga., on this date in 1962.
MARCH 3 TO JUNE 30 EXHIBIT: VANISHING WORLDS - ART AND RITUAL OF AMAZONIA. Traveling exhibition of more than 150 rare items offering insight into the cultures of diverse native peoples of South America's Amazon region. University of Pennsylvania Museum, 3260 South St.
, Phila. (215) 898-4000. MARCH 4 CHINA: LANTERN FESTIVAL.
Lantern processions mark the end of the Chinese New Year holiday season. Also celebrated in Taiwan and Korea. FRANCES PERKINS: CABINET APPOINTMENT ANNIVERSARY.
On this date in 1933, Perkins became the first woman appointed to the president's cabinet when she was appointed secretary of labor by President franklin D. Roosevelt. PURIM.
Hebrew calendar date: Adar 14, 5767. Feasts, gifts, charity and reading of the Book of Esther mark this joyous commemoration of Queen Esther's intervention in the sixth century to save the Jews of ancient Persia. BIRTHDAYS: EMILIO ESTEFAN, 54, percussionist for the Miami Sound Machine, born in Havana on this date in 1953.
KEVIN JOHNSON, 41, former basketball player, born in Sacramento, Calif., on this date in 1966. MIRIAM MAKEBA, 75, actress, singer, anti-apartheid activist, born in Johannesburg, South Africa, on this date in 1932.
MARY WILSON, 63, singer (original member of the Supremes with Diana Ross and Florence Ballard), born in Detroit on this date in 1944. MARCH 4-11 IRELAND - CENTERPIECE OF THE 2007 PHILADELPHIA FLOWER SHOW taking place through March 11 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, 12th and Arch streets, Phila. Show producers have teamed up with sponsor Tourism Ireland and garden creators to present, Legends of Ireland.
. INTERNATIONAL GAY SKI WEEK. South Lake Tahoe, Nev.
International event which has taken place since 1996 on Lake Tahoe's scenic south shore and includes the Gay World Cup Ski Race and nightly entertainment. MARCH 5 AUSTRALIA: EIGHT HOUR DAY OR LABOR DAY. Western Australia and Tasmania.
Parades and celebrations commemorate trade union efforts during the 19th century to limit working hours. GUAM: DISCOVERY DAY OR MAGELLAN DAY. Commemorates discovery of Guam in 1521 by Magellan.
BIRTHDAYS: MARSHA WARFIELD, 53, actress, born in Chicago on this date in 1954. FRED WILLIAMSON, 69, actor, former professional football player, born in Gary, Ind., on this date in 1938.
MARCH 6 LECTURE: RACIAL DIVISIONS, COMMON STRUGGLES - ASIAN AND AFRICAN AMERICANS IN THE AGE OF EMANCIPATION by Moon-Ho Jung, historian, University of Washington. 4:30 p.m.
in the Science Center, Room 101, Swarthmore College, College Drive, Swarthmore, Pa. (610) 328-8535. DRED SCOTT DECISION: 150TH ANNIVERSARY.
This decision on this date in 1857 was the most famous by U.S. Supreme Court during the prewar slavery controversy.
Dred Scott, a slave, had successfully petitioned for his freedom based on his previous residence in a free state and territory. CHANA: INDEPENDENCE DAY: 50TH ANNIVERSARY. National holiday commemorating independence from Great Britain in 1957.
BIRTHDAYS: GABRIEL GARCIA-MARQUEZ, 79, Novel Prize-winning author of A Hundred Years of Solitude and Love in the Time of cholera, born in Aracaracca, Colombia, on this date in 1928. MARCH 7 PROGRAM: NATIVE AMERICAN WOMEN, featuring discussions on Pocahontas, Sacajawea, Wakuweis, Alequippa, and the Constitution of the Iroquois. 6:30 to 8 p.
m. Franklin Township Library, 1584 Coles Mill Road, Franklinville. Suitable for students in grades 5 and up.
To register by March 5, call (856) 694-2833. SUEZ CANAL OPENS: ANNIVERSARY. This waterway across Egypt connecting the Mediterranean and the Red seas was built on this date in 1869 by the French.
In 1956, Egyptian president Nasser nationalized the canal, prompting an invasion by the British, French and Israelis. The Six-Day War in 1967 shut down the canal for eight years. MARCH 8 REV.
CLARENCE WILLIAMS, a member of the Missionaries of Precious Blood and the first African-American priest ordained in Cleveland, will address the Catholic, Jewish, Muslim dialogue; terrorism and immigration issues. 7 to 9 p.m.
, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception church hall, 642 Market St., Camden. Sponsored by the Racial Justice Committee of the Camden Diocese, a group of Catholics and non-Catholics that works to increase awareness of the problem of racial discrimination that affects many ethnic groups in the community and society.
To register, call Deacon William Johnson, committee chairman, or Merrilyn W. Faison, program coordinator, at (856) 583-6137. Admission is free but registration is requested.
CONCERT: AN EVENING IF IRISH MUSIC featuring Marc Carroll and Company. 7:30 p.m.
William G. Rohrer Memorial Library, 15 MacArthur Blvd., Haddon Township.
(856) 854-2752. INTERNATIONAL (WORKING) WOMEN'S DAY. A day to honor women, especially working women.
Said to commemorate an 1857 march and demonstration at New York by female garment and textile workers. CHINESE NEW YEAR CELEBRATION. Demonstrations in Chinese paper folding, painting and Kung-fu.
Performances in music, lion dances, songs and traditional dances. The evening begins at 6 p.m.
in Cherry Hill High School West, Chapel Avenue, Cherry Hill. (856) 488-7868. UNITED NATIONS: DAY FOR WOMEN'S RIGHTS AND INTERNATIONAL PEACE.
An international day observed by the organizations of the United Nations system. DANCE SHOW: CARLOTA SANTANA'S FLAMENCO VIVA. 8 p.
m. Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, Jim Leeds Road, Pomona. $24 and $40.
(609) 652-4786. BIRTHDAYS: JAMES EDWARD (JIM) RICE, 54, former baseball player, born in Anderson, S.C.
, on this date in 1953. RAYNOMA GORDY SINGLETON, 70, co-founder of Motown Records, born in Detroit on this date in 1937. MARCH 8-10 DANCE SHOW: COMPANIA NACIONAL DE DANZA 2.
Remansos is set to Enrico Granados' piano music. Rassemblement explores the theme of human rights in Haiti. 7:30 p.
m. March 8, 8 p.m.
March 9, 2 and 8 p.m. March 10.
Zellerbach Theater, Annenberg Center, 3680 Walnut St., Phila. $32 to $44.
(215) 898-3900. MARCH 8-APRIL 8 THEATER: CAROLINE, OR CHANGE. Race, rage and civil rights are at the heart of this acclaimed, deeply personal story by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, Tony Kushner.
Arden Theater, 40 N. Second St., Phila.
(215) 922-1122. MARCH 9 RAUL JULIA: BIRTH ANNIVERSARY. Born on this date in 1940 in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Julia won acclaim and four Tony nominations for roles he played on Broadway.
DINNER/LECTURE SERIES: CELEBRATED NACHO DUATO. 6 p.m.
Spanish dinner, 6:45 p.m. talk on the Spanish choreographer Nacho Duato by Randy Swartz.
Annenberg Center, 3680 Walnut St., Phila. (215) 898-3900.
BIRTHDAYS: BENITO SANTIAGO, 42, baseball player, born in Ponce, Puerto Rico, on this date in 1965. MARCH 10 DISCOVERY DAY: LATIN AMERICA. Head south and bask in the lush beauty of Latin America.
Meet native creatures when the Philadelphia Zoo on Wheels - Remarkable Rainforest creatures visit, see exotic plants native to the region up close and enjoy colorful dance and music. Longwood Gardens, Route 1, Kennett Square, Pa. $12 adults; $6 asges 16-20; $2 ages 6-15; free under age 6.
(610) 388-1000. SLAINTE - AN IRISH CELEBRATION presented by ChildrenSong of New Jersey. Tickets include dinner and enteratinment.
7 p.m. Valleybrook County Club, 20 Golfview Drive, Blackwood.
$35 adults or $60 per couple in advance. (856) 216-1140. IRISH CULTURAL AND HISTORIC RECEPTION.
Over 50 items will be on display, Irish music, antiquities, monies, traditions, cultures and tragedies will be discussed. 2 p.m.
Willingboro Library, behind the Commerce Bank Bldg., corner Kennedy Blvd. and Route 130, Willingboro.
HARLEM GLOBETROTTERS. 7:30 p.m.
Sovereign Bank Arena, 81 Hamilton Place, Trenton. $15 to $121. MARCH 10-15 JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL.
Through March 15 at six locations, Katz JCC, Springdale and Kresson roads, Cherry Hill, Ritz Sixteen, 900 Haddonfield Berlin Road, Voorhees; Enterprise Center at BCC, 3331 Route 38, Mount Laurel; AMC Lowes 24, Route 38, Cherry Hill; M'kor Shalom, 850 Evesham Road, Cherry Hill; and Beth Sholom, 1901 Kresson Road, Cherry Hill. $8 in advance JCC members; $10 non-members. By tickets online at or call (856) 424-4444, ext.
292. MARCH 11 CELEBRATE NOROOZ. A joyous festival of new life observed by Persians nd the Tajik, Afghan, Uzbek and Kurdish people.
Make-and-take workshops, performances by Silk Road Dance Company and presentation of the Sofreh Haft Sin, drawing together program, etc. 10:30 a.m.
to 4:45 p.,m. Philadelphia Museum of Art, Benjamin Franklin Parkway at 26th St.
, Phila. CONCERT: ROAD TO THE ISLES. Instrumental music, dance and folksong traditions of Ireland and Scotlane.
3 p.m. Dante Hall Theater, Mississippi Avenue, Atlantic City.
$30. (609) 344-8877. BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS ESTABLISHED: ANNIVERSARY.
The U.S. War Department created the Bureau of Indian Affairs on this date in 1824.
LITHUANIA: RESTITUTION OF INDEPENDENCE DAY. Commemorates independence from the Soviet Union in 1990. BIRTHDAYS: TERRENCE HOWARD, 38, actor, born in Chicago on this date in 1969.
BOBBY MCFARRIN, 57, jazz musician, singer, songwriter, conductor, born in New York City on this date in 1950. MARCH 12 MUSTAFA KEMEL ATATURK: BIRTH ANNIVERSARY. Born on this date in 1881, he was the founder of modern Turkey.
After a distinguished army career, he led the Turkish revolution after WWI and was elected Turkey's first president. BERMUDA COLONIZED BY ENGLISH: ANNIVERSARY. The ship of Admiral Sir George Somers, taking settlers to Virginia, was wrecked on the reefs of Bermuda on this date in 1609.
The islands had been discovered in the early 1500s, but were uninhabited until 1609. GABON: NATIONAL DAY. Observes founding of Gabonese Democratic Part on March 12, 1968.
LESOTHO: MOSHOESHOE'S DAY. Commemorates the great leader Chief Moshoeshoe I, who unified the Basotho people, beginning in 1820. BIRTHDAYS: MARLON JACKSON, 50, singer, born in Gary, Ind.
, on this date in 1957. RAUL MONDESI, 36, baseball player, born in San Cristobal, Dominican Republic, on this date in 1971. DARRYL EUGENE STRAWBERRY, 45, former baseball player, born in Los Angeles, on this date in 1962.
ANDREW YOUNG, 75, civil rights leader and former mayor of Atlanta, born in New Orleans on this date in 1932. MARCH 12-19 SPAIN: FIESTA DE LAS FALLAS. Valencia.
Festival of burning effigies and fireworks has been celebrated for more than 150 years. MARCH 13 ST. PATRICK'S DAY STORIES AND CRAFTS for 7-10-year-olds.
6:30 p.m. Evesham Library, 984 Tuckerton Road, Marlton.
(856) 983-1444. HELEN "CALLAGHAN" CARDAELE SAINT AUBIN: BIRTH ANNIVERSARY. Born on this date in 1929, Saint Aubin and her sister, Margaret Maxwell, were recruited for the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, which flourished in the 1940s when many major league players were off fighting WWII.
BIRTHDAYS: CHARO, 56, singer, actress, born in Murcia, Spain, on this date in 1951. MARCH 13-MAY 1 SPANISH FOR KIDS: HOLA Y BUENOS DIAS! 4 p.
m. Tuesdays March 13, 20 and 27, April 3, 17 and 24 and May 1. For ages 7-12.
Burlington County Library, 5 Pioneer Blvd., Westampton. (609) 267-9660, ext.
3035. MARCH 14 SEOUL RECAPTURED BY UN FORCES: ANNIVERSARY. March 14, 1951.
Seoul, Korea, which had fallen to Chinese forces in Jan. 1951, was retaken by United Nationls troops during the Korean War. LUCY HOBBS TAYLOR: BIRTH ANNIVERSARY.
Born on this date in 1833, Taylor was the first woman in America to receive a degree in dentistry and to be admitted to membership in a state dental association. ST. PATRICK'S DAY STORYTIME AND CRAFT for 5-7-year-olds.
4 p.m. Burlington County Library, 5 Pioneer Blvd.
, Westampton. (609) 267-9660, ext. 3035.
MARCH 15 BELARUS: CONSTITUTION. National holiday commemorating the adoption of the constitution on this date in 1994. ST.
PATRICK'S DAY CRAFT for 7-14-year-olds. 3:45 p.m.
Maple Shade Library, 200 Stiles Ave., Maple Shade. (856) 779-9767.
HUNGARY: ANNIVERSARY OF THE 1848 REVOLUTION. National day commemorating when the country briefly attained autonomy from Austria. LIBERIA: J.
J. ROBERTS DAY. National holiday commemorating the birth in 1809 of the country's first president.
BIRTHDAYS: HAROLD DOUGLAS BAINES, 48, former baseball player, born in St. Michael's, Md., on this date in 1959.
ROBERT TERRELL (TERRY) CUMMINGS, 46, former basketball player, born in Chicago on this date in 1961. MARCH 16 BLACK PRESS DAY: ANNIVERSARY OF THE FIRST BLACK NEWSPAPER. Anniversary of the founding of the first black newspaper in the U.
S., Freedom's Journal, on Varick Street in New York City on this date in 1827. MY LAI MASSACRE: ASNNIVERSARY.
March 16, 1968. Most-publicized atrocity of the Vietnam War. According to findings of US Army's investigating team, approximately 300 noncombatant Vietnamese fillagers were killed by infantrymen to the American Divison.
MARCH 16-APRIL 15 THEATER: IN THE CONTINUM. Living apart in L.A.
and Zimbabwe, two young women experience a kaleidoscopic weekend of darkly comic events when their lives are changed forever as each is diagnosed with HIV. Philadelphia Theater Company, 230 S. 15th St.
, Phila. (215) 985-0420. phillytheatreco.
com. MARCH 17 NAT "KING" (NATHANIEL ADAMS) COLE: BIRTH ANNIVERSARY. Born on this date in 1919, Cole began his musical career at an early age, plaing the piano at age four.
He was the first black entertaininer to host a national TV show. He was critized by blcak newspapers for not joiing other black entertainers in the civil rights struggle. He contributed more than $50,000 in civil rights organizations in response to the criticism.
FEMALE RELIEF SOCIETY OF NAUVOO ORGANIZED. On this date in 1842, 20 Mormon women formally initiated this organization, which is now known as the Relief Society and has grown to almost 4 million members. IRELAND: NATIONAL DAY.
St. Patrick's Day is observed in the Republic of Ireland as a legal national holiday. NORWAY: BIRKEBEINERRENNET.
Rena and Lillehammer. Since 1932, ski marathon of 54km between the cities of Rena and Lillehammer in which competitots cary a backpack weighing 3.5 kg.
The race and backpack commemorate an epic journey in Norwegian history. BAYARD RUSTIN: BIRTH ANNIVERSARY. This black pacifist and civil rights leader was born on this date in 1910.
He was an organizer and participant in many of the great social protest marches. SOUTH AFRICAN WHITES VOTE TO END MONORITY RULE: 15TH ANNIVERSARY. On this date in 1992, a referendum proposing ending white monority rule through negotations was supported by a whies-only ballot.
ST. PATRICK'S DAY CELEBRATION. 9 a.
m. to 5 p.m.
Celtic musical performance by teada, Irish dance workshop, storytelling performance, kids activities, authentic Irish food. 9 a.m.
to 5 p.m. Longwood Gardens, Route 1, Kennett Square, Pa.
$12 adults; $6 ages 16-20; $2 ages 6-15; free under age 6. (610) 388-1000. MARCH 18-JUNE 16 EXHIBIT: PIRANESI - THE GRANDEUR OF ANCIENT ROME.
Etching capturing the meloncholy splendor of "ruined Rome". University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, 3260 South St., Phila.
$8 adults; $5 senior citizens and students with ID; age 6 and under admitteed free; free Sunday afternoon through May 20. (215) 898-4000. MARCH 18 ARUBA: FLAG DAY.
National holiday. Display of flags, national music and folkloric events. WILLIAM H.
JOHNSON: BIRTH ANNIVERSARY. African-American artist, who spent many years in Europe painting expressionist works, was born on this date in 1901. He left Europe when Hitler began destroying art that had primitivist or African themes.
ST. PATRICK'S DAY CELEBRATION WITH ACTOR/MUSICIAN PATRICK BALL IN O'CAROLAN'S FAREWELL TO MUSIC. Described as "hauntingly beautiful ballads and lilting storytelling" by Variety, Patrick Bell shapes a wondeerful musical theater piced.
7 p.m. Ritz Theater, 915 White Horse Pike, Haddon Township.
$20. (856) 858-5230. BIRTHDAYS: SHASHI KAPOOR, 69, actor, born in Calcutta, India, on this date in 1938.
QUEEN LATIFAH, 37, rap artist, actress, born Dana Owens in East Orange, Essex County, on this date in 1970. VANESSA WILIAMS, 44, singer, actress, born in New York City on this date in 1963. IRAN: NATIONAL DAY OF OIL.
National holiday commeorating the nationalization of Iran's oil fields in 1963. MARCH 20 JAPAN: VERNAL EQUINOX DAY. National holiday in Japan.
OSTARA. One of the "Lesser Sabbats" during the Wiccan year. Fire and fertility festival markign the beginning of spring.
RABU' 1: THE MONTH OF MIGRATION. Begins the Islamic calendare date Rabi'I, 1, 1428. TUNISIA: INDEPENDENCE DAY.
Commemorates treaty in 1956 by which France recognized Tunisian autonomy. BIRTHDAYS: SPIKE LEE, 50, director, producer, writer, born in Atlanta on this date in 1957. LECTURE: NUESTRA AMERICAN-LATINO HISTORY AS UNITED STATES HISTORY.
4:30 p.m. Science Center, Room 101, Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, Pa.
IRANIAN NEW YEAR: NORUZ. National celebration for all Iranians, this is the traditional Persian New Year. BENITO JUAREZ: BIRTH ANNIVERARY.
A full-blooded Zapontec Indian, Juarez was born at Oaxaca, Mexico in 1906 and grew up to become the president of Mexico. A symbol of liberation and of Mexican resistance to foreign intervention, his birthday is a public holiday in Mexico. NAMIBIA: INDEPENDENCE DAY.
National day commemorating independence from South Africa in 1990. NAW-RUZ. One of the nine days of the yesar when Baha'is suspend work.
SELMA CIVIL RIGHTS MARCH: ANNIVERSARY. On this date in 1965, more than 3,000 civil rights demonstrators led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
began a four-day march from Selma, Ala., to Montgomery, Ala., to demand federal protectionof voting rights.
SOUTH AFRICA: HUMAN RIGHTS DAY. National holiday commeorating the March 1960 massacre at Sharpeville and all those hwo lost their lives in the struggle for equal rights as citizens of South Africa. UNITED NATIONS: INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR THE ELIMINATION OF RACIAL DEISCRIMINATION.
Initiated by the United Nations General Assembly in 1966 to be observed annually on March 21, the anniversary of the killing of 69 African demonstrators at Sharpeville, South Africa. MARCH 21-27 UNITED NATIONS: WEEK OF SOLIDARITY WITH THE PEOPLES STRUGGLING AGAINST RACISM AND RACIAL DISCRIMINATION. Annual observance initiated by the United Nations General Assembly as part of its program of the Decade for Action to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination.
MARCH 22 EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT SENT TO STATES FOR RATIFICATION: 35TH ANNIVERSARY. On this date in 1971, the Senate passed the 27th Amendment, prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sex, sending it to the states for ratification. Hawaii led the way as the first state to ratify and by the end of the year 22 states had ratified it.
INDIA: NEW YEAR'S DAY. First day of the New Year on the Saka calendar adopted by India after independence from Great Britain. PUERTO RICO: EMANCIPATION DAY.
Holiday commemorating the end of slavery on this date in 1873. TUSKEGEE AIRMEN ACTIVATED: ANNIVERSARY. On this date in 1941, a pioneering and highly decorated WWII African-American aviator unit gained their name during training at the U.
S. Army airfield near Tuskegee, Ala., and at the Tuskegee Institute.
992 black pilots emerged from training to fly P-39, P-40, P-47 and P-51 aircraft in more than 15,000 sorties in North Africa, Sicily and Europe. On escort missions, they were the only unit that never lost a U.S.
bomber. Lt. Col.
Benjamin O. Davis Jr., later the U.
S. Air Force's first black general, was their commander. MARCH 22-25, MARCH 29-APRIL 1; APRIL 5-7.
PSTXC,100 THEATER: THE CHOSEN. Story of two boys who grew up together who grew up "five blocks and a world away" from each other. One is the son of a respected Jewish scholar, the other is the son of a Hasidic rabbi, yet their friendhsip affects the rest of theire lives.
Players Club of Swarthmore, 614 Fairview Ave., Swarthmore, Pa. (610) 328-4271.
MARCH 23 AKIRA KUROSAWA: BIRTH ANNIVERSARY. Acclaimed filmmaker was born in Tokyo on this date in 1910. He was known as the ambassador of Japanese cinema to the West.
PAKISTAN: REPUBLIC DAY. National holiday. In 1940 the All-India-Muslim League adopted a resolution calling for a Muslim Homeland.
On the same day in 1956 Pakistan declared itself a republic. BIRTHDAYS: MOSES EUGENE MALONE, 53, Hall of Fame basketball player, born in Petersburg, Va., on this date in 1954.
MARCH 24 BIRTHDAYS: STAR JONES REYNOLDS. 45, television personality, born in Badin, N.C.
, on this date in 1962. MARCH 24-25 NATCHEZ POWWOW. Natchez, Miss.
Native American dancing and crafts. MARCH 25 CHARLIE PARKER AT THELA PHILHARMONIC: ANNIVERSARY. One of the most influential solos of jazz alto saxophonist Chaarlie ("Bird") Parker's career was his rendition of Lady Be Good performed at the Los Angeles Philharmonic Auditorium on this date in 1946.
GREECE: INDEPENDENCE DAY. National holiday celebrating the beginning of the Greek revolt for independence from the Ottoman Empire on this date in 1821. SLAVE TRADE ABOLISHED BY ENGLAND: 200TH ANNIVERSARY.
The English Parliament abolished the slave trade after a long campaign against it. VIVA EL MARIACHI! FESTIVAL.
Fresno, Calif. Longest-running Mariachi festival in the US. BIRTHDAYS: ARETHA FRANKLIN, 65, singer, born in Memphis, Tenn.
, on this date in 1942. MARCH 25-31 GREECE: DUMB WEEK. The week preceding Holy Week on the Orthodox calendar is known as Dumb Week, as no services are held in churches throughout this period except on Friday, eve of the Saturday of Lazarus.
MARCH 26 BANGLADESH: INDEPENDENCE DAY. Commemorates East Pakistan's independence in 1971 as the state of Bangladesh. Celebrated with parades, youth festivals and symposia.
PRINCE JONAH KUHIO KALANIANOLE DAY. Hawaii. Commemorates the man who, as Hawaii's delegate to the U.
S. Congress, introduced the first bill for statehood in 1919. Not until 1959 did Hawaii become a state.
SEWARD'S DAY: ANNIVERSARY OF THE ACQUISITION OF ALASKA. Observed in Alaska near the anniversary of its acquisition from Russia in 1867. The treaty of purchase was signed between the Russians and the Americans March 30, 1867.
BIRTHDAYS: MARCUS ALLEN, 47, former football player, TV commentator, born in San Diego, on this date in 1960. ELAINE LAN CHAO, 54, U.S.
Secretary of Labor, born in Taipei, Taiwan, on this date in 1953. TEDDY PENDERGRASS, 57, singer, born in Philadelphia, on this date in 1950. DIANA ROSS, 63, singer, actress, born in Detroit on this date in 1944.
MARCH 27 LUXEMBOURG: OSWEILER. Blessing of horses, tractors and cars. MYANMAR: RESISTANCE DAY.
National holiday commemorating the day in 1945 when Burma officially joined the Allies in WWII. SARAH VAUGHN: BIRTH ANNIVERSARY. Born on this date in 1924, this legendary jazz singer is renowned for her melodic improvising, wide vocal range and extraordinary technique.
She began her career by winning an amateur contest at New York's Apollo Theater in 1943. BIRTHDAYS: RANDELL CUNNINGHAM, 44, former football player, born in Santa Barbara, Calif., on this date in 1963.
MARCH 28 CZECH REPUBLIC: TEACHER'S DAY. Celebrates on this birthday of Jan Amos Komensky, Moravian educational reformer. LIBYA, BRITISH BASES EVACUATION DAY.
National holiday commemorating the closing of British bases on this day in 1970. VIETNAM MORATORIUM CONCERT: ANNIVERESARY. On this date in 1970, a seven-hour concert was held in Madison Square Garden in New York City, featuring many stars who donated their services for the antiwar cause.
MARCH 29 PEARL MAE BAILEY: BIRTH ANNIVERSARY. Born on this date in 1918, this American signer and Broadway musical star began her career in vaudeville and won a special Tony Award in 1968 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1988. CANADA: BRITISH NORTH AMERICA ACT: ANNIVERSARY.
On this date in 1867, the British Parliament established the Dominion of Canada, uniting Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: BOGANDA DAY. National holiday commemorating the death of Barthelemy Boganda, the first president, in 1959.
MADAGASCAR: COMMEMORATION DAY. Memorial Day for the victims of the rebellion in 1947 against French colonization. BIRTHDAYS: EARL CHRISTIAN CAMPBELL, 52, Hall of Fame football player, born in Tyler, Texas, on this date in 1955.
MARCH 29-31 SYDNEY DANCE COMPANY. Australia's formost contemporary dance company returns with director Graeme Murph's exhilarating Grand, a tribute to piano music. 7:30 p.
m. March 29, 8 p.m.
March 30 and 2 and 8 p.m. March 31.
Annenberg Center, 3680 Walnut St., Phila. (215) 893-3900.
MARCH 30 FRANCISCO JOSE DE GOYA: BIRTH ANNIVERSARY. Spanish painter and etcher was born on this date in 1746. It is estimated that he executed more than 1,800 paintings, drawings and lithographs during his lifetime.
CAMILLE NICKERSON ("THE LOUISIANA LADY"): BIRTH ANNIVERSARY. Born on this date in 1888, Nickerson was a music arranger and composer who is remembered for her musical talent and her work as a music collector who gathered and transcribed Creole music. Of Creole extraction herself, Nickerson performed for a time in the U.
S. and Europe using the stage name, "The Louisiana Lady." BIRTHDAYS: M.
C. HAMMER, 44, rapper, born Stanley Kirk Burrell in Oakland, Calif., on this date in 1963.
MARCH 30 ONGOING ITALIAN MARKET. Tours, history, information, 10 a.m.
Fridays at the Italian Market, Philadelphia. Register and specify date, (215) 334-6008, $30 per person includes tour, tastings, food demonstrations and cooking tips. MARCH 31 CESAR ESTRADA CHAVEZ: 80TH BIRTH ANNIVERSARY.
Born on this date in 1927, Chavez was a labor leader who organized migrant farm workers in support of better working conditions. DALAI LAMA FLEES TIBET: ANNIVERSARY. On this date in 1959, the Dalai Lama fled Chinese suppression and was granted political asylum in India.
The Dalai Lama received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989 for his commitment to the nonviolent liberation of his country. JOHN (JACK) ARTHUR JOHNSON: BIRTH ANNIVERSARY. Boxer was born on this date in 1878.
In 1908, Johnson became the first black to win the heavyweight boxing championship when he defeated Tommy Burns inat Sydney, Australia. Unable to accept a black man's triumph, the boxing world tried to find a white challenger, and Jim Jeffries, former heavyweight title holder, was badgered out of retirement. On July 4, 1919, in Reno, Nev.
, the "battle of the century" proved to be a farce when Johnson handily defeated Jeffries. MAWLID AL NABI: THE BIRTHDAY OF THE PROPHET MUHAMMAD. Mawlid al Nabi (birth of the Prophet Muhammad) is observed on Muslim calendar date Rabi al-Awal 12, 1428.
CONCERT: 18TH CENTURY MUSIC IN HEBREW for soloists, chorus and orchestra. Philadelphia Baroque orchestra Tempesta di Mare will assemble 50 aftists to perform Hoshanna! hebrew Music of the High Baroque, featuring long-lost 18th century works.
8:30 p.m. Irvine Auditorium, 3401 Spruce St.
, Phila. Israel Adler's talk will begin one hour before each performance. (215( 755-8776.
CONCERT: TERENCE BLANCHARD. Legendary trumpeter, composer and bandleader blazes a trail through America's music. 8 p.
m. Gordon Theater, Rutgers University, Third and Pearl streets, Camden. $22 to $26.
(856) 225-2700. CONCERT: PIANIST, CHU-FANG HUANG, Gold Prize Winner of Cleveland International Piano Competition. 8 p.
m. William Mount-Burke Theater, Peddie School, S. Main St.
, Hightstown. $20. (609) 490-7550.
Source: Chase's Calendar of Events, readers Did you know? POCAHONTAS daughter of Powhatan, was born about 1595 near Jamestown, Va. She was the leader of the Indian union of Algonkin nations and helped to foster goodwill between the colonists of the Jamestown settlement and her poeople.
She converted to Christianity, was baptized with the name Rebecca and married John Rolfe on April 5, 1614. In 1616, she accompanied Rolfe on a trip to his native England, where she was regarded as an ambassador. Her stay drew so much attention to the Jamestown settlement that lotteries were held to help support the colony.
Shortly before she was scheduled to return to Jamestown, Pocahontas died at Gravesend, Kent, England, on March 21, 1617, of either smallpox or pneumonia. Do you know of any multicultural events in your neighborhood? Let us know.
Send listings to: Multicultural Calendar, "Courier-Post,' P.O.
News RSS