1. In 1865, January 9 marked the date when the 13th Amendment to the US Constitution was passed by the House of Representatives, officially abolishing slavery.

2. On January 9, 1918, famed civil rights leader and founder of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) W.E.B. Du Bois gave a speech at Howard University in Washington, DC on the importance of education for African Americans.

3. January 9, 1965 was a significant date in the civil rights movement as the DC nonviolent action group Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) held a demonstration against segregation in public schools.

4. In 2007, January 9 saw the swearing-in of former DC Council member Vincent Gray as Chairman of the Council, a position he held until being elected Mayor of the District of Columbia in 2010.

5. On January 9, 2017, the Women's March on Washington was held in the nation's capital, drawing hundreds of thousands of participants to protest the inauguration of President Donald Trump and advocate for women's rights.